What Arsenal must not do against West Ham on Wednesday as Mikel Arteta’s side prepare for Premier League meeting without Aubameyang. (Photo by Justin Setterfield/Getty Images)
This is the biggest game of the season so far for Arsenal. That’s not the first time that we’ve said that and it won’t be the last, but for now this is an exceptionally important match.
Who’d have thought that not long ago? Arsenal vs West Ham at the Emirates Stadium being a scrap for fourth place or, more realistically, the top six. At least as far as the home side are concerned, anyway. It’s a credit to West Ham for bring in the position they’re in and, well, the opposite for Arsenal.
A Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang-less team is embroiled in its fixation for drama. The kryptonite encrusted armband continues to disintegrate the superheros this club believe they’re instilling as captain.
But amid all of that is the opportunity to move into fourth position with a victory. It seems remarkable to think that’s even a possibility what with all the off-field incidents taken centre stage. It’s true, though, and for once this team could jump at such an opportunity instead of letting it walk all over them without so much as a challenge.
What Arsenal must not do against West Ham on Wednesday as Mikel Arteta’s side prepare for Premier League meeting without Aubameyang
The Crystal Palace game was an opportunity wasted. The Manchester United game was a glorious opportunity wasted. The meeting with West Ham is a wonderful opening to squeeze ahead of the Hammers while fellow European hopefuls can only watch on.
It’s been said a few times this season, but it might just look like West Ham have hit their snag in the road of late. On home soil, this is a game to prove that Arsenal’s mid-table form is only temporary and that they can spring top six results.
If they want to do so, they’ll have to keep their discipline in check.
Nicolas Jover is earning rightful praise for his fine work on attacking set pieces. That’s now eight in the Premier League for Arsenal, a figure the Irons are only two off. However, aerially this is a menacing side with their tally of 16 set piece goals last term unbeaten by all other sides.
With giants like Tomas Soucek, any one of their central defenders and Michail Antonio up front they pose all sides a threat and keeping it clean in and around the penalty area will require focus as you do not want to concede a hatful of dead balls situations to David Moyes’ side.
That’s one, but there is another large threat of theirs that has to be managed, and it will require two top performances.
Continued on next page…
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<h2>What Arsenal must not do against West Ham on Wednesday as Mikel Arteta’s side prepare for Premier League meeting without Aubameyang</h2>
<p>The Crystal Palace game was an opportunity wasted. The Manchester United game was a glorious opportunity wasted. The meeting with West Ham is a wonderful opening to squeeze ahead of the Hammers while fellow European hopefuls can only watch on.</p>
<p>It’s been said a few times this season, but it <em>might </em>just look like West Ham have hit their snag in the road of late. On home soil, this is a game to prove that Arsenal’s mid-table form is only temporary and that they can spring top six results.</p>
<p>If they want to do so, they’ll have to keep their discipline in check.</p>
<p>Nicolas Jover is earning rightful praise for his fine work on attacking set pieces. That’s now eight in the <a href=https://paininthearsenal.com/2021/12/15/arsenal-must-avoid-west-ham/"https://www.90min.com/leagues/premier-league" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Premier League</a> for Arsenal, a figure the Irons are only two off. However, aerially this is a menacing side with their tally of 16 set piece goals last term unbeaten by all other sides.</p>
<p>With giants like Tomas Soucek, any one of their central defenders and Michail Antonio up front they pose all sides a threat and keeping it clean in and around the penalty area will require focus as you do not want to concede a hatful of dead balls situations to David Moyes’ side.</p>
<p>That’s one, but there is another large threat of theirs that has to be managed, and it will require two top performances.</p>
<p><em>Continued on next page…</em></p>
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<img decoding="async" loading="lazy" class="size-large wp-image-121770" src=https://paininthearsenal.com/2021/12/15/arsenal-must-avoid-west-ham/"https://images2.minutemediacdn.com/image/fetch/c_fill,g_auto,f_auto,h_389,w_590/https%3A%2F%2Fpaininthearsenal.com%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2Fgetty-images%2F2017%2F07%2F1358649915-850x560.jpeg" alt="Arsenal, Ant" width="590" height="389"><div class="fs-center-img">
<p class="wp-caption-text" style="width:590px;">BURNLEY, ENGLAND – DECEMBER 12: Michail Antonio of West Ham United looks on during the Premier League match between Burnley and West Ham United at Turf Moor on December 12, 2021 in Burnley, England. (Photo by Alex Livesey – Danehouse/Getty Images)</p>
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<h2>Gabriel & White Have to Defend Their Lanes vs Michail Antonio</h2>
<p>Starting the season just as he finished the previous one, Antonio has now gone seven league matches without a goal. Numbers tell one story, and are usually just foreshadowing to Arsenal doing something against the grain, but Antonio’s threat remains pertinent.</p>
<p>An aggressive runner with and without the ball, this is going to be a game for Gabriel and Benjamin White to show their physical sides.</p>
<p>Antonio is always looking to run the channels. His stretching of the back four is one of the primary ways that the Irons push their lines up, and letting him win those one-on-one battles early on will be what disrupts the flow of what Arsenal want to do and will set the panic in.</p>
<p>Gabriel chopped Nathan Redmond down after two minutes in the Southampton game and he can’t afford to do so again. You do not want to spend 85 minutes against Antonio on a booking.</p>
<p>Following the runs into the lanes behind the central defenders and matching the physicality is one of the key ways to nullify West Ham’s overall threat: he wins corners, free-kicks, gets shots off and brings others into play. Try not to let him, even if that’s far easier said than done.</p>
<p>But this is a West Ham side whose attack is not firing on all cylinders. They’re lacking cohesion in the final third and shutting down Antonio early doors with some meaty challenges or statement pieces of defending to let him know he’s in for a tough can dampen their confidence straight off the bat.</p>
<div class="fs-shortcode" data-type="StoryLink" data-theme="dark" data-text="Predicted lineup vs West Ham" data-url="https://paininthearsenal.com/2021/12/14/arteta-right-aubameyang-arsenal-captain/" data-call-to-action="Next"> <div class="story-link-next"> <a class="story-link-next-btn" style="background: #c01f2f" data-track="shortcode" data-track-action="story-link-next-shortcode" href=https://paininthearsenal.com/2021/12/15/arsenal-must-avoid-west-ham/"https://paininthearsenal.com/2021/12/14/arteta-right-aubameyang-arsenal-captain/"> <span class="call_to_action">Next:</span> Predicted lineup vs West Ham </a> </div>
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<p>This, believe it or not, a good time to be <a href=https://paininthearsenal.com/2021/12/15/arsenal-must-avoid-west-ham/"https://paininthearsenal.com/2021/12/13/arsenal-west-ham-premier-league-preview/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">playing West Ham</a>.</p><!—pageview_candidate—>">
