West Ham 2-2 Arsenal: Player ratings as Hammers blow title race wide open
FROM LONDON STADIUM - Arsenal's Premier League title challenge suffered a huge blow as relegation-threatened West Ham United fought back from two goals down to earn a thoroughly deserved 2-2 draw.
The Gunners raced into a two-goal advantage, scoring inside the first ten minutes through Gabriel Jesus and Martin Odegaard to leave the hosts shellshocked.
But their superiority soon waned, unexpectedly, as West Ham's pace, energy and willingness to push forward soon put them in the ascendancy.
Said Benrahma halved Arsenal's lead from the penalty spot, after Thomas Partey's mistake led to Gabriel Magalhaes fouling Lucas Paqueta, before Bukayo Saka missed an early second half penalty after Michail Antonio's handball.
Jarrod Bowen's superbly taken volley then earned the Hammers a richly deserved share of the spoils, though they could have won the game had Antonio's header not ricocheted off the crossbar and over.
Arsenal made one change from the team that dropped points against Liverpool one week prior, with Kieran Tierney coming in for Oleksandr Zinchenko, who was ruled out late on with a tight groin.
West Ham, meanwhile, made eight changes from the side that drew with Gent in the Europa Conference League on Thursday, and three from the side that beat Fulham 1-0 at Craven Cottage in their last Premier League outing; Nayef Aguerd and Angelo Ogbonna the most notable absentees in defence and from the squad as a whole.
Any hopes the home faithful had of a good start were quickly put to bed as Arsenal raced into a two-nil lead inside the opening ten minutes.
First, intricate combination play down the right flank eventually freed Ben White, and his precision cross from the byline was tapped in at the far post by an unmarked Gabriel Jesus. Moments later, Odegaard doubled the lead, as Benrahma and Aaron Cresswell contrived to give the Norwegian the freedom of the London Stadium penalty area.
Arsenal's captain didn't need a second invitation, volleying home Martinelli's whipped cross through the legs of the unfortunate Lukasz Fabianski.
It was the worst possible start for the Hammers, who looked all at sea for the first 25 minutes as a disconsolate David Moyes shook his head on the touchline.
But a rare gift from Arsenal's usually reliable midfield gifted the home side a route back into the game. Partey dallied on Kieran Tierney's short pass for a split-second too long, and his pocket was picked by the onrushing Declan Rice.
West Ham's skipper fed Paqueta, and he was able to nick the ball ahead of Gabriel before the Brazilian made contact with his shins. Referee David Coote pointed to the spot, with Benrahma stepping up to send Ramsdale the wrong way.
Inspired by the energy of Antonio up front and the press of Benrahma, Paqueta, Bowen and Rice, West Ham suddenly had the upper hand against an Arsenal side who had looked so calm and composed in the early stages.
That momentum was almost halted as Antonio was penalised for handball, handing Arsenal a golden opportunity to take a 3-1 lead. But Bukayo Saka, one of the Premier League's players of the season, fired his penalty wide of the post, much to the delight of the 60,000 home supporters in attendance.
West Ham punished that mistake within minutes, as Thilo Kehrer's diagonal ball back into the penalty area was seized upon by the impressive Bowen. He'd managed to get himself back onside, and proceeded to volley superbly past Ramsdale, who could only tip the ball onto the inside of his near post.
Arteta eventually turned to Jorginho and Leandro Trossard to try and regain control of proceedings, but West Ham remained well on top while being backed by a thumping London Stadium crowd.
Antonio hit the bar with a header from Benrahma's cross, but Arsenal weren't able to test Fabianski meaningfully again. The result leaves the Gunners just four points ahead of Manchester City in the title race, who have played a game less, and they meet at the Etihad on April 26.
West Ham player ratings (4-1-4-1)
GK: Lukasz Fabianski - 6/10 - Didn't have a save to make in the first half, instead picking the ball out of his net from Jesus and Odegaard's goals.
RB: Vladimir Coufal - 7/10 - Fell asleep at the back post to allow Jesus a simple tap-in, though the damage was done by prior mistakes elsewhere in the build-up. Put in one hell of a shift.
CB: Kurt Zouma - 7/10 - Given a rough ride early on by Arsenal's initial onslaught but found his feet in the battle against Jesus and Martinelli.
CB: Thilo Kehrer - 6/10 - Played on the left half of central defence and looked wobbly early on - understandable in an unfamiliar position. Communication with Cresswell looked a problem throughout but improved.
LB: Aaron Cresswell - 6/10 - Usual story at left-back - attacking output promising but defensively not the best.
DM: Declan Rice (c) - 8/10 - Really helped West Ham up the ante after quickly falling 2-0 down. Sprung on Partey in the lead up to West Ham's penalty.
CM: Tomas Soucek - 6/10 - Contributed to West Ham getting a grip on the game with endless closing down. Got his foot on a couple of crucial occasions.
CM: Lucas Paqueta - 8/10 - At 2-0 down you wondered if Paqueta was just going to drift into obscurity. He didn't, helping the Hammers turn the tables with a performance full of relentless running and closing down.
RM: Jarrod Bowen - 8/10 - Absolutely superb volley to bring West Ham level - real elite level technique that shouldn't be understated. Seemed inspired by the raucous atmopshere.
LM: Said Benrahma - 6/10 - Partly culpable for both of Arsenal's goals, not communicating with Cresswell to fulfil his defensive duties. Got going in an attacking sense and soon became a real handful. Composed from the spot.
CF: Michail Antonio - 8/10 - Really put himself about up top, harassing Arsenal's usually unflappable defence into mistakes. The Antonio of old.
Substitutes
CM: Flynn Downes (87' for Paqueta) - N/A
CF: Maxwel Cornet (87' for Antonio) - N/A
LM: Pablo Fornals (90' for Benrahma) - N/A
Not used: Areola (GK), Anang (GK), Johnson, Emerson, Lanzini, Ings
Manager
David Moyes: 7/10 - Must have given his players an absolute rocket after the first 25 minutes. To his credit, he pushed West Ham higher up the field and the performance level turned rather spectacularly.
Arsenal player ratings (4-3-3)
GK: Aaron Ramsdale - 6/10 - Sent the wrong way by Benrahma's penalty before tipping over Antonio's header minutes later. Couldn't get enough of a hand on Bowen's effort to keep it out.
RB: Ben White - 7/10 - Ghosted in behind a static West Ham backline to put the ball on a plate for Gabriel Jesus. Always an outlet in attack but had moments where defensive positioning could be questioned.
CB: Rob Holding - 5/10 - Always feels a bit awkward identifying a 'weak link' but there's no doubting that Holding and William Saliba are levels apart.
CB: Gabriel Magalhaes - 6/10 - Looked so composed in defence the majority of time, but was the one to bring down Paqueta for West Ham's penalty.
LB: Kieran Tierney - 6/10 - Popped up in central areas to good effect and also overlapped Martinelli well when necessary. Lack of minutes didn't show.
CM: Thomas Partey - 5/10 - Clumsily gave the ball away to Rice deep in his own half, which directly led to the penalty being conceded. Booked moments later in what was an awkward spell.
CM: Granit Xhaka - 6/10 - Pretty quiet afternoon for Xhaka, with much of Arsenal's good work circunavigating the Swiss midfielder.
CM: Martin Odegaard (c) - 7/10 - Effortlessly brilliant in the first half, drifting into space before popping off clever passes at will. Superb technique to meet Martinelli's cross first time for the second goal.
RW: Bukayo Saka - 5/10 - Subtle movements from Saka allowed White and Odegaard to really dominate the first 20 minutes on West Ham's left hand side. Awful, awful penalty in the second half that goes against everything he's achieved this season.
ST: Gabriel Jesus - 7/10 - Really, really good in the opening exchanges. Drifted in at the back stick unnoticed to put Arsenal ahead and did plenty of good work in transition.
LW: Gabriel Martinelli - 6/10 - A real livewire in the first quarter of the game, highlighted by a superbly weighted cross for Odegaard to volley home. Faded badly.
Substitutes
CM: Jorginho (67' for Partey) - 6/10 - Brought on simply to calm things down in midfield and attempt to regain control.
CF: Leandro Trossard (67' for Jesus) - 5/10 - Made little impact.
CM: Fabio Vieira (85' for Tierney) - N/A
LW: Reiss Nelson (85' for Martinelli) - N/A
CF: Eddie Nketiah (90' for Odegaard) - N/A
Not used: Turner (GK), Walters, Kiwior, Smith Rowe, Nketiah
Manager
Mikel Arteta: 5/10 - Should have made changes far earlier to help Arsenal wrestle back momentum in the game. A sign perhaps of the Spaniard's confidence in his side, but it was obvious that West Ham had the upper hand.