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Arsenal vs West Ham United Player Ratings: 9/10 duo Martinelli, Lacazette shine; terrific Fabianski gets 8

December 16, 2021 2:59 pm
Reading Time: 10 mins read
Arsenal and Chelsea told to pay £65 million for Ivan Toney.
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Ten-man West Ham United were beaten handsomely by Arsenal moved up to fourth on the Premier League table with a 2-0 win at the Emirates.

David Moyes continued his winless run against Arsenal at the Emirates, as the Gunners thoroughly beat his West Ham United on Wednesday. In the perspective of the top-four race, this was a huge result for the north Londoners, who pip the Hammers to move up to the fourth spot, albeit temporarily.

In the backdrop of the match, there was the Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang situation, which did not seem to affect the Arsenal players, who produced a terrific, all-round display to dismantle West Ham. Second half goals from Gabriel Martinelli and Emile Smith Rowe did the job for the Gunners, while Alexandre Lacazette missed a penalty.

Arsenal dominated from start to finish, never giving West Ham any time on the ball to build momentum and become a threat. After a promising start to the game, the Gunners kept knocking on the door and came close to scoring three times before the half-time whistle blew.

The Gunners came flying in the second half, as Martinelli used his pace to get behind the Hammers defence before finishing past Lukasz Fabianski at the far post with a low finish. Gabriel Magalhaes and Lacazette were the architects of the goal, while the Frenchman could have doubled the lead when he won a penalty.

Right-back Vladimir Coufal might have a harsh feeling over the decision as he won the ball but ended up clattering the Frenchman in the process. Anthony Taylor awarded the penalty and showed a second yellow to the Czech defender, reducing the Hammers to ten men. Lacazette was unfortunate to see his effort saved by Fabianski, who kept his team in the contest.

Substitute, Smith Rowe made a darting run with the ball late to finish in style, securing the three points for Arsenal. The result ensured the Gunners move to fourth on the Premier League table, one point above West Ham United. Here’s how the players fared as Arsenal recorded a 2-0 victory over West Ham United at the Emirates.

Arsenal

Aaron Ramsdale: 7/10

A solid performance by Arsenal backline meant Ramsdale barely had anything to do as he finished the evening with a clean sheet. He did have to earn that by making a tremendous save from Jarrod Bowen in the second half after an error by Granit Xhaka. Otherwise, the English stopper was dominant in his area, collecting balls and distributing them with ease.

Takehiro Tomiyasu: 8/10

The Japanese international silently did his job on the right flank, keeping Pablo Fornals and Arthur Masuaku quiet throughout the evening. From a positioning point of view, Tomiyasu was seen taking multiple positions (right-back, midfield, centre-back) and providing Bukayo Saka the support on the right-wing.

Ben White: 7.5/10

Defensively, Ben White was crisp and kept things quiet. He did his job against the threat of Fornals and Manuel Lanzini to prevent any danger from those attackers. He did lack the nous in progressing the ball with his usual vigour, as the Hammers may have targetted him too much.

Gabriel Magalhaes: 7.5/10

Gabriel won his physical battle with Michail Antonio and rendered Bowen insignificant for most parts. It was a very proactive performance from the centre-back, who played a crucial role in the build-up to the opening goal, threading the ball to Lacazette from the back.

Kieran Tierney: 7.5/10

Tierney took up advanced positions for most of the game and was a real threat down the left flank, combining well with Martinelli. He came close to scoring in the first half with a thunderous effort which crashed the crossbar. Defensively, he was sound and kept Bowen and even Antonio quiet, winning his duels and matching them physically.

Thomas Partey: 8/10

Partey produced another confidence-boosting performance, and he was was much assured on the ball than in previous matches. The Ghanaian kept control of the midfield areas as he slipped away from pressure situations many times and often found a pass forward to set the tempo of the attacking play.

Granit Xhaka: 6.5/10

Xhaka still looks a bit rusty and not up to speed. Yet, he was instrumental in helping Partey keep control of the game in the central areas. One glaring error in the second half was when he failed to receive Martin Odegaard’s ball, which led to a rare West Ham shot on target, saved superbly by Ramsdale.

Bukayo Saka: 8.5/10

Saka produced yet another scintillating performance, causing Arthur Masuaku all sorts of problems. He held his own on the right flank and was unlucky not to score in the second half, seeing his effort smartly saved by Lukasz Fabianski. Saka eventually got an assist as he slipped the ball to Emile Smith Rowe, who went on to seal the win.

Martin Odegaard: 7/10

Odegaard was a threat every time Arsenal looked to attack the ball, as he kept his distribution levels at the very top. He was crucial in bringing others into play, and he would have been disappointed not to have continued his recent scoring streak. In the second half, he made way for Smith Rowe as Arsenal looked to add more impetus in attack.

Gabriel Martinelli: 9/10

Was this his coming of age moment? The Brazilian has shown his talent over the last two seasons, but he is finally putting together a consistent run of good performances. Martinelli opened the scoring with a brilliant low finish, and he kept the energy not only in the final third but also while winning loose balls.

Alexandre Lacazette: 9/10

A top-notch display as Lacazette led his team by example and showed what a captain must be doing. The Frenchman gets a high rating despite missing the penalty, as he was everywhere, battling and winning his duels. His skills on the ball were excellent, often setting the tone and pace of Arsenal’s attack. He set up Martinelli with a perfectly-weighted through ball to split the West Ham defence.

SUBSTITUTES

Emile Smith Rowe: 7.5/10

Without many contributions to keeping the pace and tone of Arsenal’s attack intact, Smith Rowe popped up with the crucial second goal, which sealed the win for his team.

Eddie Nketiah: 6/10

Nketiah replaced Martinelli, as Arsenal looked for a killer second goal. He played his role in retaining possession in the final third.

Nuno Tavares: 6/10

Tavares came on for Lacazette after the second goal was scored and helped add some defensive nous as Arsenal looked to run the clock down.

West Ham United

Lukasz Fabianski: 8/10

Fabianski thoroughly kept West Ham in the game, especially in the first half, making a string of good saves and putting his body on the line. The former Arsenal goalkeeper kept out a lot of shots as Arsenal kept knocking on the door. The first goal was a positional mistake from the Pole, although he made amends later by saving the penalty by Lacazette.

Vladimir Coufal: 3/10

After struggling on the evening to make any relevant contribution to the Hammers’ attacking forays, Coufal will feel aggrieved after not getting the benefit of the doubt with his two bookings, earning a red card in the end.

Craig Dawson: 6.5/10

Dawson put in a decent shift, dealing with the physical threat of Lacazette, although he found it difficult when defending out of the penalty area. He was beaten for pace by Martinelli for the opening goal, but otherwise, he was decent.

Issa Diop: 6/10

Like the entire West Ham defence, Diop also struggled to get the grip with the pace and intensity of Arsenal’s attackers. He made one crucial block to deny Saka a goal in the second period.

Arthur Masuaku: 5/10

Masuaku thoroughly struggled with the intensity of Saka on his flank, as the Arsenal attacker kept him on his toes. Even Tomiyasu got the better of him at times, and Masuaku often found it difficult to bring the ball forward to contribute in the final third.

Tomas Soucek: 4.5/10

Soucek offered nothing to the cause, apart from being an aerial presence to win balls in midfield. His impact was nullified by Partey’s presence in midfield, with the Ghanaian utterly dominating the area, which Soucek should generally have.

Declan Rice: 7/10

After Fabianski, Rice was West Ham’s best player on the evening. He made his usual driving runs into the final third, but he lacked the support of his teammates. He was disappointed in the end by the manner of the defeat and the intensity of his teammates.

Manuel Lanzini: 4/10

The Arsenal defence was on hand to dismantle any possible threat Lanzini could pose. He was subbed off in the second half for Said Benrahma as Moyes tried to pull an equaliser.

Jarrod Bowen: 4/10

Bowen found no joy dealing with Gabriel and Tierney on the right side of the attack. He had one good attempt saved superbly by Ramsdale.

Michail Antonio: 4/10

After failing to impact the game centrally, Antonio was often seen drifting out to the right to make things happen, which yielded the same result. He momentarily found some joy after shifting to a wing-back role following Coufal’s dismissal, which too was short-lived.

Pablo Fornals: 4.5/10

Moyes mentioned how important Fornals is in helping out with the pressing and ball-winning aspects before the game. The Spaniard did nothing to maintain the faith, as he even failed to help out Masuaku defensively when needed.

SUBSTITUTES

Said Benrahma: 5/10

Moyes sent in Benrahma in search of an equaliser and improving the output in the attacking third. He could do none of those things, and he was guilty of losing the ball before Arsenal scored their second.

Harrison Ashby: N/A

Ashby came in late for his debut and slotted in at right-back as Moyes did not want to concede more goals.

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