The Premier League title race is firmly in Arsenal’s hands after a 3-1 Boxing Day win over David Moyes’ West Ham United FC at the Emirates as Mikel Arteta’s young Gunners continue to show that age is nothing but a number during a comeback win during an impressive London derby win on familiar carpeting.
Arsenal passed a difficult test with flying colors on a night where – in seasons past – perhaps would have otherwise folded during a period of adversity, but the current belief that continues to take hold at London Colney rose to the surface once again as club legend Arsène Wenger made his long-awaited return to the Emirates for the first time since announcing his retirement from management.
It feels so good to be back ❤️ pic.twitter.com/FzelSBKIuA
— Arsenal (@Arsenal) December 26, 2022
Arteta’s side began the night in relative control in the opening twenty-five minutes of action with Bukayo Saka feeling hard done when his well-struck effort at the near post after being set up by Eddie Nketiah was pulled back for offside.
Arsenal certainly looked the more comfortable of the two sides but West Ham opened the scoring on 26-minutes after Jarrod Bowen was judged to have been brought down in the area by William Saliba before Saïd Benrahma slammed home his effort from the spot to give the Hammers just their fourth goal away from home and a 1-0 lead.
The Gunners nearly thought they would find their way back to level terms after Martin Ødegaard’s effort at goal in stoppage time was first judged to have hit Aaron Cresswell’s arm for handball before VAR intervened to show the ball struck the England defender’s head directly, leaving Arteta and the home support frustrated as the league leaders went into the half-time interval down a goal.
Saka would set the record straight less than ten minutes after the break, however, when Ødegaard – arguably Man of the Match – turned provider with his shot-come-through ball found the England starlet free in the box and onside to slot past former Gunners keeper Łukasz Fabiański for his fifth league goal of 2022-23.
🔎 | FOCUS
Martin Ødegaard was Arsenal’s main man in their 3:1 comeback win over West Ham:
👌 81 touches
🅰️ 2 assists
🎁 2 big chances created
🔑 5 key passes
👟 56/60 accurate passes
💨 2/3 successful dribbles
⚔️ 6/10 duels won
📈 8.9 Sofascore rating🔥🔥#ARSWHU pic.twitter.com/JBVqRSBwYI
— Sofascore (@SofascoreINT) December 26, 2022
Eddie Nketiah answered his critics not long after when the English youngster spun German international Thilo Kehrer after Ødegaard played a pass to feet, finding room to slot low and into the bottom corner to give Arsenal a 3-1 lead as the Gunners looked free and clear with 20-minutes left to play.
That lead would ultimately prove to be the death knell on proceedings in a London derby that saw Arsenal jump to a seven-point lead over second-sitting Newcastle United after their win at Leicester City earlier today, and eight clear of Manchester City ahead of the reigning champions’ tie with Leeds United on Wednesday.
📰 Table Of Contents
Arsenal Player Ratings
- Aaron Ramsdale (GK): 6.5
- Ben White (RB): 7
- William Saliba (CB): 6
- Gabriel Magalhães (CB): 6.5
- Kieran Tierney (LB): 6.5
- Thomas Partey (CM): 7.5
- Granit Xhaka (CM): 7.5
- Martin Ødegaard (CAM): 8.5
- Bukayo Saka (RW): 8
- Gabriel Martinelli (LW): 7.5
- Eddie Nketiah (CF): 7.5
- Oleksandr Zinchenko (Sub): 6
- Fábio Vieira (Sub): N/A
- Mohamed Elneny (Sub): N/A
West Ham United Player Ratings
- Łukasz Fabiański (GK): 6.5
- Vladimír Coufal (RB): 6
- Craig Dawson (CB): 6.5
- Thilo Kehrer (CB): 5.5
- Aaron Cresswell (LB): 6
- Declan Rice (CM): 6.5
- Tomaš Souček (CM): 6
- Lucas Paquetá (CAM): 6
- Jarrod Bowen (RW): 6.5
- Saïd Benrahma (LW): 6.5
- Michail Antonio (CF): 6
- Pablo Fornals (Sub):
- Divin Mubama (Sub): N/A
Social Media
🚨 EXCL: Arsene Wenger at Emirates Stadium for visit of West Ham. Big moment – 73yo Frenchman attending 1st Arsenal game since leaving club in 2018. Now chief of global football development at FIFA. W/ @amylawrence71 @gunnerblog @TheAthleticFC #AFC #ARSWHU https://t.co/r8zxeyKZKk
— David Ornstein (@David_Ornstein) December 26, 2022
We’re not sure David Moyes is looking forward to facing Arsenal 😅 pic.twitter.com/L10M5wgbse
— ESPN UK (@ESPNUK) December 26, 2022
Mikel Arteta on Nketiah: “We have more faith in Eddie every single day. We see every day what he brings to the team. We got a great response last year when we needed him. He is ready. That is why he signed his contract. He is a key player in our squad & is going to have chances.” pic.twitter.com/z0bb8saDxZ
— afcstuff (@afcstuff) December 26, 2022
Will Arteta overcome his former boss tonight? 🤷♂️ #AFC #Arsenal #ARSWHU pic.twitter.com/Mm75aVZQp8
— AFTV (@AFTVMedia) December 26, 2022
Benrahma makes no mistake and sends it down the middle! 🧊#ARSWHU 0-1 (26) https://t.co/7ZJqG3Ok1q
— West Ham United (@WestHam) December 26, 2022
Bukayo Saka’s fifth Premier League goal this season ✨ #BBCFootball #ARSWHU pic.twitter.com/dp33dNw3iK
— BBC Sport (@BBCSport) December 26, 2022
⏱ 53′ Saka scores
⏱ 58′ Martinelli scoresArsenal’s starboys at it again 🌟🌟#ARSWHU pic.twitter.com/4gXq08DoyT
— LiveScore (@livescore) December 26, 2022
Eddie Nketiah in the Premier League this season:
◎ 1 start
◉ 1 goalHe answered the call. 📞#ARSWHU
— Squawka Live (@Squawka_Live) December 26, 2022
