Arsenal 2 (Lacazette 25, NKetiah 85) v West Ham United 1 (Antonio 45)
Assists: Aubameyang, Ceballos. Fredericks
Yellows: Nil Fredericks
Played at Emirates Stadium, on Saturday 19 September 2020, attendance nil.
This was a game which Arsenal, who had 63% possession, won despite not playing well, and in part because of West Ham United’s bad luck. We’ve heard all that before! Alexandre Lacazette opened the scoring for the Gunners, as he seems so often to do, with a good headerwhich was his 50th goal for the Club. The equalizer came from Michail Antonio just before half-time using his strength in the box from close range. This was his 9th goal in his last 9 F.A.P.L. matches and a cause for optimism for the Hammers. In this game though it was Antonio who had most of the bad luck, with an early shot well saved, a header against the cross bar, and a weakly hit shot when well placed. The Hammers Manager David Moyes also does not have much luck, if any, against the Gunners, with a combined 20 visits with Everton, Manchester United, Sunderland and now West Ham United in all competitions yielding only 4 draws, no wins and 16 defeats. The winner came late too this time and somewhat against the run of play when Eddie Nketiah tapped in from close range after Dani Ceballos’s cross. More harmony there than last week at Craven Cottage where the same two players almost came to blows!
There is no Premier London derby (PLDs) match this weekend, next up being Chelsea v Crystal Palace on Saturday 3 October, so more on that next time.
Until then, remember “Face, Hands, Space” and keep safe, Andrew at PLDs.