It was a game of “what if’s” for West Ham as they saw themselves lose 1-0 against Arsenal.
West Ham missed a host of golden opportunities before conceding a 78th-minute goal against the run of play.
This means that David Moyes’ men failed to capitalize on their important victory over Southampton and their chances of Premier League survival have taken another knock.
Here are the West Ham player ratings in what was such a disappointing loss.
Lukasz Fabianski – 7
West Ham’s number one made a crucial save early on in the second half to keep the scores level and generally looked back to his assured self throughout the match.
Jeremy Ngakia – 6
The rookie right-back once again held his own, this time against Arsenal talisman Aubameyang. He did get caught out of position on a couple of occasions throughout the match, but he is still learning his trade at the Premier League level.
Issa Diop – 7
The Frenchman played pro-actively and anticipated Arsenal danger throughout the game. He deserved a clean sheet along with his fellow defenders.
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Angelo Ogbonna – 7
Similarly to Diop, he contained Arsenal’s attack well and if it wasn’t for a ricochet in the build-up to the Arsenal goal, he would have had a clean sheet to his name.
Aaron Cresswell – 6
Had a tough game against Pepe but in general, kept him reasonably quiet. Could have been more pro-active in getting forward.
Declan Rice – 6
Solid as usual from West Ham’s ever-present man. Provided a base for West Ham’s attackers to flourish.
Mark Noble – 5
Set up Haller in the first half which the Frenchman couldn’t control. Other than that, he found himself out of position too often and, as usual, was subbed off far too late in the game.
Pablo Fornals – 5
An early booking seemed to restrict his game slightly and was not nearly as involved as last week. Like Noble, should have been subbed off earlier.
Jarrod Bowen – 6
Probably the best player among West Ham’s attack as he looked threatening every time he got the ball. Created a good chance for Haller late on but could have done better with a couple of his own shots.
Michail Antonio – 4
People may argue with such a low rating as he gave the Arsenal defence something to think about throughout the game, but ultimately he inexplicably missed several key chances which would have likely granted West Ham the win.
Sebastien Haller – 4
It would be unfair to give Haller a higher rating than Antonio as he also missed his fair share of chances. The two need to regain their shooting boots if West Ham are going to climb the table.
Substitutes:
Tomas Soucek – N/A
Felipe Anderson – N/A
Neither player was given enough time on the pitch to warrant a rating. *Cough* Moyes.
Manager:
David Moyes – 6
It is too harsh to blame Moyes for the defeat, as with a pair of more clinical strikers, the three points would have been his. He does, however, remain too reactive in his substitutions, as they were both made when his side went behind.
The open game would have been perfect for Anderson to come on earlier in the second half, while Noble again clearly stayed on the pitch for far too long.
All-in-all, it was a hugely disappointing day for the Hammers, but they have frankly only got themselves to blame.
With a difficult home fixture against Wolves up next, shooting practice should be top of the priority list as they look to get back on track.