Arsenal miss chance to go top as West Ham win at Emirates

West Ham stunned Arsenal to record a third successive Premier League victory, denting the Gunners' title challenge in the process.

It was a ruthless display by West Ham, who converted two of their three shots on target, while Arsenal squandered a host of opportunities as they missed the chance to move top of the league.

Tomas Soucek fired in Jarrod Bowen's cutback and, while the ball had potentially gone out of play in the build-up, there was not enough evidence for the video assistant referee to overturn the goal.

That gave West Ham a first-half lead which was doubled when former Arsenal centre-back Konstantinos Mavropanos expertly headed in a corner in the 55th minute.

Despite plenty of possession and pressure, Arsenal could not find a response.

And their woeful night was nearly made worse when Declan Rice gave away a penalty in the final minute of injury time, but Said Benrahma's effort was saved by David Raya.

The result leaves Mikel Arteta's Gunners second in the table, two points behind league leaders Liverpool, while West Ham end the year with 33 points - their highest total at the halfway stage in a Premier League campaign.

Missed opportunity for Gunners

Arsenal's undoing was their inability to convert dominance and possession into goals.

As the match wore on, their failure to capitalise only led to frustration - not only on the pitch but also in the stands, as fans grew weary and the atmosphere drained at Emirates Stadium.

Opportunities were spurned as Bukayo Saka struck the post in the first half, Gabriel Martinelli fired wide and Gabriel Jesus headed high.

Ex-West Ham captain Rice later fizzed an effort over the bar, before Hammers goalkeeper Alphonse Areola denied Leandro Trossard and Martin Odegaard.

It was a stark contrast to West Ham's fortunes and the visitors were able to brilliantly fend off countless attacks with selfless defending.

Arsenal's lack of ruthlessness could prove costly with five teams sitting within six points of each other at the top of the Premier League. There is little room for error.

Season's greetings for Hammers

West Ham's results in December have been a festive treat with Moyes' side backing up an impressive win over Manchester United with this stunning result at the Emirates.

It means they sit sixth in the table, well in the mix for European qualification, following four wins, one draw and one defeat in the league this month.

Despite losing England midfielder Rice in the summer, who lined up for Arsenal against his former club for the first time, West Ham have shown maturity and growth in the first part of the campaign and have been rewarded with their highest points tally.

But there will be an anxious wait to learn the extent of Lucas Paqueta's injury - the Brazilian midfielder had ice strapped to his left leg after being forced off in the 31st minute, having pulled up in the warm-up before being risked anyway.

Player of the match

ÁlvarezEdson Álvarez

with an average of 7.92

Arsenal

1. Squad number8Player nameØdegaard

   Average rating

   4.53

2. Squad number41Player nameRice

   Average rating

   4.44

3. Squad number2Player nameSaliba

   Average rating

   4.37

4. Squad number7Player nameSaka

   Average rating

   4.36

5. Squad number10Player nameSmith Rowe

   Average rating

   4.30

6. Squad number6Player nameGabriel Magalhães

   Average rating

   4.12

7. Squad number4Player nameWhite

   Average rating

   3.95

8. Squad number9Player nameGabriel Jesus

   Average rating

   3.95

9. Squad number11Player nameGabriel Martinelli

   Average rating

   3.90

10. Squad number19Player nameTrossard

    Average rating

    3.88

11. Squad number22Player nameRaya

    Average rating

    3.73

12. Squad number14Player nameNketiah

    Average rating

    3.69

13. Squad number24Player nameNelson

    Average rating

    3.64

14. Squad number35Player nameZinchenko

    Average rating

    3.58

West Ham United

1. Squad number19Player nameÁlvarez

   Average rating

   7.92

2. Squad number23Player nameAreola

   Average rating

   7.92

3. Squad number7Player nameWard-Prowse

   Average rating

   7.92

4. Squad number14Player nameKudus

   Average rating

   7.91

5. Squad number15Player nameMavropanos

   Average rating

   7.91

6. Squad number21Player nameOgbonna

   Average rating

   7.90

7. Squad number28Player nameSoucek

   Average rating

   7.90

8. Squad number33Player nameEmerson

   Average rating

   7.86

9. Squad number20Player nameBowen

   Average rating

   7.82

10. Squad number5Player nameCoufal

    Average rating

    7.76

11. Squad number10Player nameLucas Paquetá

    Average rating

    7.38

12. Squad number22Player nameBenrahma

    Average rating

    7.23

Line-ups

Arsenal

Formation 4-3-3

22Raya

4White2Saliba6Gabriel35Zinchenko

8Ødegaard41Rice19Trossard

7Saka9Gabriel Jesus11Martinelli

• 22Raya
• 4White
• 2Saliba
• 6Gabriel
• 35ZinchenkoSubstituted forNelsonat 64'minutesBooked at 72mins
• 8Ødegaard
• 41Rice
• 19TrossardSubstituted forSmith Roweat 79'minutes
• 7Saka
• 9Gabriel JesusBooked at 90mins
• 11MartinelliSubstituted forNketiahat 64'minutes

Substitutes

• 1Ramsdale
• 10Smith Rowe
• 14Nketiah
• 15Kiwior
• 17Cédric Soares
• 20Jorginho
• 24Nelson
• 25Elneny
• 63Nwaneri

West Ham

Formation 4-2-3-1

23Areola

5Coufal15Mavropanos21Ogbonna33Emerson

19Álvarez28Soucek

14Kudus7Ward-Prowse10Lucas Paquetá

20Bowen

• 23Areola
• 5Coufal
• 15Mavropanos
• 21Ogbonna
• 33Emerson
• 19Álvarez
• 28Soucek
• 14Kudus
• 7Ward-Prowse
• 10Lucas PaquetáSubstituted forBenrahmaat 33'minutes
• 20Bowen

Substitutes

• 1Fabianski
• 2Johnson
• 3Cresswell
• 8Fornals
• 17Cornet
• 18Ings
• 22Benrahma
• 24Kehrer
• 45Mubama

Referee:

Michael Oliver

Attendance:

60,261

Match Stats

Live Text

Post update

Match ends, Arsenal 0, West Ham United 2.

Adblock test (Why?)

(Feed generated with FetchRSS)