A former Gunner shone in goal for the visiting side while another ex-Arsenal man had a poor showing in midfield.
Arsenal defenders Hector Bellerin and Nacho Monreal. (Photo: AFP)
Arsenal vs West Ham United was the highlight clash of the Premier League on Saturday and the London Derby certainly was no damp squib as the Gunners ran out 3-1 winners at the Emirates Stadium.
Marko Arnautovic gave the visitors the lead with a fine strike midway into the first-half, but Nacho Monreal would equalise soon after to leave the tie evenly poised at the interval.
The half-time introduction of Alexandre Lacazette proved to be an inspired one as the French forward’s cross-shot hit Issa Diop before bouncing into the net and Danny Welbeck would make sure of the spoils for the North Londoners late in the tie.
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It was an open-ended clash in the English capital and here are The Statesman’s player ratings:
The veteran is definitely improving, but how long can he keep Bernd Leno out of the XI?
Smart stops to keep Arsenal in the game as usual.
Rating: 6/10
Defensively still found wanting, but did score the leveller and his offensive contributions cannot be overlooked.
Rating: 6/10
Got booked at the death but truth be told, struggled from kick off to keep tabs on the likes of Arnautovic.
Rating: 5/10
Like his central defensive partner, didn’t get his positioning quite right and on another day, West Ham could have scored three.
Rating: 5/10
Defensively adept for a change, but his crosses were on point against the Irons and one was gleefully converted by Welbeck right at the death.
Rating: 6/10
Improved showing from the Swiss midfielder.
Rating: 6/10
All over the place.
Showed his inexperience and was hooked for Torreira before the hour mark.
Rating: 4/10
Struggled to match last week’s heroics and was sacrificed for a tactical change at the interval.
Did good to assist Monreal for the opener.
Rating: 6/10
The Armenian was at the heart of all of Arsenal’s forays, in both halves.
Had his teammates been a bit more prolific, would have had a couple of assists.
Rating: 7/10
Energetic showing, as always.
Lacked that extra bit of quality in the final third though.
Rating: 6/10
Much better showing than his horror-show against Chelsea, but that isn’t saying much.
Rating: 6/10
Not for the first time this season, made a splash when he came on in the second half.
Effectively forced the winner and deserves to start, either with Aubameyang or solo.
Rating: 7/10
The South American hardman was quite decent n the ball as well and played a vital role in the third goal.
Rating: 7/10
Cool finish to kill off the game.
Easily the standout player.
Made a string of superb stops to keep his side in the game until the Gunners pulled away in the second period.
Rating: 8/10
Couldn’t cope with Arsenal’s swift attacks, especially after Lacazette’s introduction.
Rating: 5/10
Evening to forget for the Paraguayan defender as he and Diop let the team down at crucial junctures.
Rating: 4/10
Unlucky to score the own goal, but on the whole it was a poor debut and he did nothing to suggest he should start the next game.
Got a yellow, to add insult to injury.
Rating: 3/10
Not the English fullback’s finest night. Got cautioned for
Rating: 5/10
Perhaps was trying to hard to impress against his former side and overcomplicated things unnecessarily.
Rating: 4/10
Drafted into the side after Noble’s injury, the Colombian struggled to impose himself on the tie.
Rating: 5/10
Got himself into a few good positions, but couldn’t quite convert anything that came his way.
Rating: 5/10
Probably the former Lazio man’s best outing in a Hammers shirt.
Smart assist to set up Arnautovic for the opener.
Rating: 6/10
The game largely bypassed him.
Rating: 5/10
Another productive outing from the mercurial Austrian as his cool finish game the Hammer the lead.
Missed a couple of good chances though, and it’s not a coincidence that post his exit, the away side looked rather blunt in attack.
Rating: 7/10
Replaced the injured Arnautovic in the second half and his smart running did cause the Arsenal backline a few problems.
Rating: 6/10
Definitely should have done better with that chance late in the second half.
Rating: 5/10
Not a bad outing from the Ukranian, but needs to do more if he’s to be selected ahead of the likes of Anderson.
Rating: 6/10
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