Key events
47 mins: Anyway, what’s done is done and Arsenal need to get an equaliser. They’ve started with a bit more urgency and win another corner …
“Can’t we all just accept that every team has felt hard done by VAR, the referees, or both?” writes Howard Webb Justin Madson.
“All of this whinging from every team, manager, and fans about decisions going against them is getting tiring. I feel bad for the referees, who are doing their best to make the right decision, knowing they’ll get an earful from someone no matter what they do.”
Peep!
The second half is under way beneath some textbook north London drizzle.
Tottenham are mounting a late comeback – it’s now 4-2 to Brighton, with the clock ticking down …
“Re: the West Ham goal,” writes Brendan Large. “Close as can be, but the thing I react most to is the complete lack of claims from Arsenal’s players that it was out.”
Yes, this is a good point – and one also made by Jermain Defoe in the punditry booth. Three Arsenal players had a pretty good view of it, and none of them appealed.
“Why, with all of the technology we have, should there ever be any doubt as to whether or not a ball goes out of bounds?” asks Russell Eberts (and others).
This is one of the key problems with the VAR debate, though – different people want different things. VAR has been criticised for slowing down play and taking decisions away from the referee, problems that were avoided here.
That said, I can understand why Arsenal fans will feel aggrieved that they can’t get a conclusive answer when there are dozens of cameras focused on the pitch. If the decision goes against your team, you want precision, no matter how long it takes.
It’s a bad night for Angeball – Brighton are now 4-0 up against Tottenham. Four-nil!
Here are the first half’s key talking points, in picture form …
Half time: Arsenal 0-1 West Ham
Ogbonna charges down another shot – he’s been excellent so far – and Bowen tries, but fails to set Benrahma away downfield. And that’s half time!
48 mins: Odegaard wriggles towards goal but is denied by an excellent Ogbonna challenge. He had to time that right, and did. Arsenal keep the ball upfield, but Rice’s handball signals the end of that attacking move.
46 mins: Kudus shrugs off his marker and plays a pass through to Bowen, but it’s slightly overhit. That one definitely went out of play.
45 mins: Five added minutes! Not quite time to dive back into the Celebrations just yet …
44 mins: From Zinchenko’s through ball, Trossard tries to get a cross in but Ogbonna deflects it back to Areola.
43 mins: At the other end, West Ham get a rare corner and after Benrahma whips the ball back into the danger zone, Bowen goes over – but the referee awards the free kick to Arsenal.
41 mins: Saka hits the post! A quick ball upfield finds Odegaard in space and he threads a pass to Saka, whose shot from a tight angle hits the near post! It almost rebounds to Odegaard, but the ball ricochets to safety.
40 mins: Kudus, who has held up and used the ball very well, gets caught out in midfield but Martinelli’s cross ultimately deflects through to Areola.
38 mins: Off the ball, West Ham’s front five are pressing expertly, taking turns to step in and jostle whoever is in possession.
36 mins: An incisive move from the hosts ends with Saka cutting the ball back and Martinelli firing just wide of the top corner.
35 mins: Arteta had some strong words for his players during that Paqueta injury break. Can they get back on level terms before half-time?
A look at the goal, and the various screenshots currently sweeping social media …
33 mins: Saka’s corner is worked to Zinchenko, via Odegaard, and Ben White meets it at the far post – but his header goes wide.
30 mins: West Ham clear the corner away and Paqueta tries to lead a break downfield – but he pulls up, and that will surely be the end of his night. The gamble to let him start the match hasn’t paid off, and Saïd Benrahma comes on to replace him.
29 mins: Oof! Saka gets his head to Jesus’ cross, and Areola has to react quickly to turn it over the bar.
28 mins: It’s cleared away at the near post, much to the home fans’ frustration. Amazon then treat us to a selection of different angles of Bowen’s cut-back, none of which are conclusive.
27 mins: Arsenal opt for a bit of trickery that doesn’t really work as the West Ham wall advances, but they do eventually win a corner.
25 mins: Arsenal get a free kick in what Ally McCoist accurately calls a “good area” after Jesus’ heels are clipped.
24 mins: More Arsenal possession deep in West Ham territory. Zinchenko sends in a cross that almost lands kindly for Odegaard, but the Hammers hold firm.
21 mins: Arsenal are trying to rebuild here; they had looked very comfortable until that goal. Still plenty of time.
“Regarding the West Ham goal, doesn’t the ref have a watch that beeps if the ball goes completely over the goal line?” says Richard Armitage. “Surely it can’t just work between the posts, right?”
18 mins: That incident was very much like the goal Japan scored against Spain at the World Cup last year – and if Arsenal don’t fight back, we might hear quite a lot more about it afterwards.
On Amazon, Mark Clattenburg intervenes to explain that as the goal was given, the VAR has to find clear evidence that the ball did go out. It’s very, very close, but Michael Oliver eventually signals that the goal will stand!
There doesn’t seem to be too much danger as Emerson trundles down the left, but he whips in a terrific cross that just evades Bowen and causes chaos in the Arsenal defence. Bowen keeps the ball in play – although that will be checked by VAR – and Soucek sweeps home from close range!
GOAL! Arsenal 0-1 West Ham (Soucek 12′)
Against the run of play, West Ham take the lead!
10 mins: Arsenal surge forward again and after Jesus can’t quite get underneath a header, Martinelli tees up Trossard to fire a shot over the bar.
9 mins: A dangerous free kick for West Ham, particularly with yer man Ward-Prowse on the pitch. He swings in a cross, but it takes a couple of deflections and goes out for a goal kick.
8 mins: An Arsenal corner is cleared away by Kudus, and Paqueta manages to prod the ball back towards the winger. West Ham hold it up and Coufal surges down the right, and is upended by Zinchenko.
7 mins: Saka bends in another dangerous cross that almost falls to Martinelli at the far post, before Zinchenko’s cross hits Coufal on the shoulder, prompting some half-hearted handball appeals from the crowd.
6 mins: West Ham are already sitting very deep – Jarrod Bowen, their centre-forward, is about 25 yards from his own goal.
5 mins: Gabriel Jesus tries a backheel of his own before Saka lifts in a cross that Areola gets a touch on, helping it evade the red shirts in the penalty area.
3 mins: Arsenal enjoy an early spell of possession, before Odegaard backheels into Saka’s path. His shot is straight at Areola, though.
1 min: An early sight of goal for James Ward-Prowse, who pings his shot over the bar from the edge of the area.
Kick off
It’s Paquetá who gets us under way.
The teams are out, and take a collective knee before kick-off. Paquetá is still starting for West Ham, who are in an all-navy third kit.
“Given Arsenal’s greatest attacking vibrancy has been saved for Champions league home games, perhaps Arteta’s best approach to this match is to convince his charges that Ouest Jambon are a French side,” writes Craig Sinclair.
A potential pre-match injury blow for West Ham, as Lucas Paquetá goes down during the warm-up. No word yet on whether he’ll still be able to start the game.
“As this is a vintage Arsenal (so we’re told) against a resurgent West Ham, I wondered if anyone had read the new Liam Brady bio yet?” asks Justin Kavanagh.
“I was wondering how he’d fit into either of these two sides today. Never mind holograms and ABBAtars, when is AI going to solve these sporting time-travel questions for once and for all?”
It’s not going to plan for Tottenham at the Amex, with Brighton racing into an early 2-0 lead …
Lest we forget, it’s a big night for Declan Rice, taking on his former club in the league for the first time.
“He’s been instrumental with us, we’re so happy to have him,” Arteta says of Rice. “He can add more goals, and take more attacking positions – he is playing in a deeper role at the moment though.”
On the title race, the Arsenal manager says: “There’s a lot of teams performing really well, and we have to maintain the level. It’s getting harder, every game is a battle, a real challenge.”
There’s another Premier League game on tonight – and it’s about to kick off. Follow Brighton v Spurs with Luke McLaughlin over here …
One change for the hosts from the 1-1 draw at Anfield, with Leandro Trossard coming in for the suspended Kai Havertz. Ethan Nwaneri, who became the Premier League’s youngest-ever player back in September 2022, gets a spot on the bench tonight.
Just the one change for West Ham too, with Angelo Ogbonna replacing Kurt Zouma in central defence. Zouma suffered a knock in training, while Nayef Aguerd is still unwell.
Team news
Arsenal (4-3-3): Raya; White, Saliba, Gabriel, Zinchenko; Rice, Ødegaard, Trossard; Saka, Gabriel Jesus, Martinelli.
Subs: Ramsdale, Smith Rowe, Nketiah, Kiwior, Cedric, Jorginho, Nelson, Elneny, Nwaneri.
West Ham (4-2-3-1): Areola; Coufal, Mavropanos, Ogbonna, Emerson; Álvarez, Soucek; Kudus, Ward-Prowse, Paquetá; Bowen.
Subs: Fabianski, Johnson, Cresswell, Fornals, Cornet, Ings, Benrahma, Kehrer, Mubama.
Referee: Michael Oliver (Northumberland)
Preamble
Having been top of the tree at Christmas, Arsenal have the chance to reclaim first place tonight with a home win over West Ham. Mikel Arteta’s side are unbeaten in nine league games at home this season; the visiting manager, David Moyes, has never won a match away at Arsenal. West Ham’s last win at the Emirates came back in April 2007. Still, there are reasons for the away fans to be more optimistic than usual tonight.
West Ham’s form on the road has improved – they already have four wins in the league, one more than all of last season – and an upturn in recent displays has moved them up to seventh place. Moyes’ side also dumped Arsenal out of the League Cup in November. This season, the Hammers have won derbies against Chelsea and Spurs, drawn with Palace and lost at Brentford and Fulham, the latter a 5-0 shellacking that Moyes has done well to quickly leave behind.
After a hard-earned point at Anfield, Arsenal begin their own run of London derbies tonight. A trip to Craven Cottage follows on New Year’s Eve, then Palace at home in mid-January, between two visits from Liverpool to the Emirates – one in the FA Cup, one in the league. Three points are essential tonight for the Gunners to maintain the edge they currently hold in the title race. Kick-off is at 8.15pm, GMT.
