LONDON • After all the fuss over Marko Arnautovic's future, the limelight belonged to a local lad who places his love of the game above the riches that are surely going to come his way.
The script seemed to demand an audacious performance from Arnautovic but instead the day belonged to Declan Rice, who sealed West Ham's 1-0 Premier League win over Arsenal with his first goal for the club.
The midfielder, who turns 20 tomorrow, also earned his side a deserved first home victory over the Gunners in 13 years after scoring in the 48th minute yesterday.
Unsurprisingly, he spoke excitedly about his "special moment" after the match, telling Sky Sports: "I can't put it into words. I was in the box, I took it on, it went in the top corner and we beat Arsenal."
He played like a seasoned professional against Arsenal, frustrating Unai Emery's side time and again with a series of well-timed interventions in defensive midfield, and displayed his outstanding technique when he settled a tight encounter with a fine shot.
"Declan Rice is improving. In the future he will be a top, top player," said West Ham manager Manuel Pellegrini.
"I was pleased with the consistency of the team. We didn't allow Arsenal to create chances. We played with the mentality of a big team. We have to try to work and play in the same way all the time."
2
Points Arsenal have taken from their five-match winless run in the Premier League, with two draws and three losses.
Awkward financial realities dominated the conversation before the London derby.
While it was disconcerting for Arsenal's fans to hear Emery say he can only afford to make loan signings this month, West Ham have been confronted by Arnautovic's desire to accept a lucrative offer from an unidentified Chinese club.
Ever the showman, Arnautovic had bleached his hair for the occasion. Yet this was a subdued performance from the Austrian striker and the greater threat emanated from Emery's forwards during the early stages.
ENGLISH PREMIER LEAGUE
YESTERDAY
Burnley 2 Fulham 1
Brighton 0 Liverpool 1
Cardiff 0 Huddersfield 0
Crystal Palace 1 Watford 2
Leicester 1 Southampton 2
West Ham 1 Arsenal 0
Chelsea v Newcastle, Late kick-offTODAY
Everton v Bournemouth, Ch102 & Ch227, 10.15pm
Tottenham v Man United, Singtel TV Ch102 & StarHub Ch227, tomorrow, 12.30amTOMORROW
Man City v Wolves, Ch102 & Ch227, Tuesday, 4am
But the visitors faded after a bright start and it was impossible not to feel that Arsenal have got themselves into an unenviable bind when it comes to their playmaker Mesut Ozil, who did not even merit a place on the bench.
Emery made his feelings clear about Ozil before kick-off, insisting that the German's absence from yet another awkward away assignment was a tactical decision, but it is an unsatisfactory situation from the club's perspective.
They are crying out for elite talents and their biggest earner, a player on £350,000 (S$608,000) a week, is not rated by his manager.
For all of Ozil's inconsistencies, the Gunners needed a player of his class and invention, as former Arsenal midfielder Samir Nasri duly demonstrated.
The 31-year-old, rebuilding his career at West Ham after a doping ban, was at the heart of much of the Hammers' best work on his Premier League debut for the club.
It was the Frenchman's neat lay-off that allowed Rice the space to curl a superb shot past Bernd Leno.
Arsenal have now lost three of their last four away matches in the league and Emery admitted it is a worry, with sixth-placed Manchester United just three points behind before their match at Tottenham Hotspur today.
"It is a concern. We need to be competitive both home and away. Away, we are not taking the results we want," the Spaniard said.
"If we can be better in the 90 minutes - competitive and quality - we can do it."
THE GUARDIAN, REUTERS
Top 10 Dramatic Comebacks Of 2016 Top 10 Greatest Comebacks In Football History Hit LIKE and SUBSCRIBE Thank you for watching! If you enjoyed, please Subscribe Leave your opinion! Thank for the
Top Ten NFL Running Backs of All Time - TheTopTens®
Iran's official IRNA news agency says authorities have banned Iran soccer coach Carlos Queiroz from leaving the country over unpaid taxes.
Bengaluru: After the rout, State Congress introspection meet
However the player himself has earmarked the final La Liga clash of the season against Villarreal for his return to action. Marca report Ronaldo wants to get a proper run out before the Champions League final, so will ask to play away against 'the Yellow Submarine' on May 20 - which takes place on the Sunday before the European showdown the
Champions League king Ronaldo delivers for Juve
London-born Nico Yennaris said he was "very proud" after becoming the first foreign-born footballer to represent China in their 2-0 victory over the Philippines on Friday. The former Arsenal and
SINGAPORE: Eight of the Singapore Premier League's (SPL) locally-based clubs will share four stadiums as part of a new initiative aimed at consolidating resources and improving match-day
Albirex's Yamazaki eyes unbeaten SPL season starting with
Eric Harrison, the former youth team coach of Manchester United's 'Class of 92', which included David Beckham and Ryan Giggs, has died aged 81, the club announced on Thursday. Harrison, who helped forge the fledgling careers of Beckham, Giggs,
(REUTERS) - England's preparations for their Nations League semi-final against the Netherlands on June 6 could be thrown into disarray if two English Premier League teams reach the Champions
Football: Champions League final may 'mess' with England's
Football: Holders USA shrug off weight of Women's World Cup
Football: Barcelona on a mission to right the wrongs - The Straits Times 18-02-2019 22:00 via "allintitle:Mission" - Google News Football: Barcelona on a mission to right the wrongs The Straits TimesBARCELONA • Clement Lenglet ought to be unscarred by Barcelona's Champions League failure last season, but disappointment reverberates around the
Fantasy Football Interview; A league winner on a mission
LONDON: Chelsea striker Olivier Giroud wants to move back to France when his contract expires at the end of the season after growing frustrated by a lack of playing time under manager Maurizio Sarri. Giroud has not started a Premier League game for Chelsea since the club signed Argentina international striker Gonzalo Higuain in January.
Chelsea's Olivier Giroud seeks France return to boost game
Football Athletics Rugby Golf Others Pogba deletes cryptic post after Mourinho axed Manchester United midfielder Paul Pogba quickly deleted a controversial social media post of him smiling
Pogba deletes cryptic post after Mourinho axed - SuperSport
adtest.supersport.com/football/premier-league/news/181219/Pogba_deletes_cryptic_post_after_Mourinho_axed
Manchester United midfielder Paul Pogba quickly deleted a controversial social media post of him smiling after manager Jose Mourinho was sacked by the club on Tuesday. Mourinho was dismissed on Tuesday after United's worst start in 28 years left them trailing Premier League leaders Liverpool by 19 points.
'Caption this': Pogba deletes cryptic post after Mourinho axed
We do it our way, says Klopp after another late Liverpool win
'I made a mistake': Pochettino takes blame but slams 'sloppy' Spurs getty, Laurence Griffiths Mauricio Pochettino took his share of the blame for "sloppy" Tottenham's 1-0 Champions League semi-final first leg defeat against Ajax after admitting he used the wrong tactics.
'I made a mistake': Pochettino takes blame but slams 'sloppy
0 comments:
Post a Comment