With two minutes to go till halftime Arsenal were cruising two goals to the good. By the time the players were leaving the field six minutes later, the score was tied.
Early in the second half West Ham took the lead as Andy Carroll completed his hat-trick. Only a Koscielny goal prevented the Hammers from claiming all three points.
Previous Arsenal squads would have found a way to score the winning goal, this squad lacks the ability to fight in the dying moments and get the maximum result.
Some questions. Is the title race over now? Should Mertesacker have started? Would Per have made a difference? Should Ospina have started? Why do so many Arsenal players not shoot first time with their weaker foot (Monreal, Sanchez)? Should Ramsey have started? Should Walcott have replaced Welbeck? Should Carroll have been sent off? Is Gabriel the long term solution to the Per problem, because I’m having doubts? Will Wenger be back next season? …
Player Ratings:
Ospina 6. I was not too happy to see Ospina tasked with dealing with West Ham’s tall timber and he was not dominant in the penalty area. That said, none of the goals were his fault. He might have done better on the first, but it’s hard to stop a volley at point blank range. He did make a couple of good saves, although he looked timid on the disallowed Payet goal.
Bellerin 6. He had his hands full dealing with Payet and company. Did attack once or twice with effect. He was super on one late fast break until he took on a third defender instead of passing inside.
Gabriel 5: Couldn’t handle Andy Carroll. Lost him at key moments, bullied, and had the indignity of twice being in the way of goal bound shots and it being of no consequence whatsoever.
Koscielny 7: Nice goal that tied up the game. He generally played okay.
Monreal 5: Not his day at all. He was fouled several times and the referee wasn’t interested (which was fortunate once, as we scored moments later our first goal). He wasn’t able to deter Carroll from scoring his first goal, then he could’ve scored a minute or two later but chose to let the ball run to his better left foot instead and the shot was blocked. Surely his right is not that bad? He had problems dealing with Antonio all day and couldn’t stop the West Ham man delivering the third goal on a platter. Otherwise, he attacked well later in the game.
Coquelin 7: He had a decent game until he was withdrawn, having made some good tackles and having kept tabs on the tricky Payet.
Elneny 6: A good game in the first half, but he was not as effective in the second.
Ozil 7: A well taken goal, but some of his set pieces were disappointing, particularly late in the game when we needed something special. He looked a little weary late in the game.
Iwobi 8: Another good game for Alex, who assisted on both of the goals. Is racking up more assists than Mesut these days.
Welbeck 7: He continues to play well and have chances or near chances. His pace and work rate make him a handful. You expect him to score a hat trick any day.
Sanchez 8: Another goal and a good game for Alexis. He had other chances but never really hit them as well as he could’ve. Passed up a golden chance late in the game, when he spurned a left footed drive and shot with his right instead … and it was blocked.
Substitutes:
Ramsey 7: Good to see him back and he played well, although he never created anything of note.
Giroud 6: Came in when we were chasing the game. Was involved in the buildup of the equalizer when one of his fancy flicks actually came off.
Walcott 5: Last play of the game, long ball comes to Theo, chance for glory … only to give it away and the final whistle sounds. Kind of symbolic of how his season has gone.