Arsenal 2-1 West Ham United: 5 talking points as super-sub Eddie Nketiah scores late winner for the Gunners | Premier League 2020-21

#3 The Gunners need reinforcements in the midfield

West Ham dominated the midfield battle

The Arsenal midfield hasn't been at their best tonight with Dani Ceballos and Granit Xhaka struggling to get a foothold. The duo was too easily overran when out of possession. Even with the ball, the Hammers stood their ground and limited Arsenal's attacking threat.

There is a clear need for reinforcements in the midfield - Ceballos is not as creative as he should have been and Xhaka was thrown off the ball too frequently. With Mesut Ozil still out of favour, Arteta needs to bring in a creative midfielder instead of relying on the wingbacks in every game.

Kieran Tierney, a regular provider of crosses from the left, missed out on the action tonight and Sead Kolasinac paled in comparison to the Scot. Ahead of the long run of fixtures in the upcoming months, Arsenal need to bring someone who can deliver every week.

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#2 West Ham relegation battle starts

The relegation fight has already begun for the Hammers

Despite making a vast improvement as compared to last week's defeat and giving their everything until the final whistle, the result did not finish in West Ham's favour. Moyes would have thought that his side performed much better than the Gunners and ought to get at least a point. Instead, they now find themselves in an early relegation battle.

Last season, West Ham had narrowly escaped relegation by finishing 16th in the EPL. Just two matches into the new season, they have no points and are currently 18th, only ahead of Fulham and West Brom on goal difference.

The Hammers will face Wolverhampton Wanderers next and Nuno Espírito Santo's team is expected to be an equally challenging opponent.

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#1 Arsenal gaining momentum ahead of Liverpool clash

Nketiah's late strike meant that Arsenal got all three points

As much as West Ham played better, it was ultimately Arsenal who took all three points from the match and in his post-match conference, Arteta addressed the importance of winning this game.

Confidence was running low among the Gunners when the scoreline was levelled at 1-1. Nketiah's late goal will give everyone the boost to believe that they have a chance against Liverpool in the upcoming EPL match and more importantly, an opportunity to finish within Champions League qualification spots this season.

If these kind of narrow victories are the ones which will see the Gunners through to the top four at the end of the season, Arteta is surely desperate for them and will want to ensure that Arsenal continue their winning record.

6/6, horrific performance but games like this are the ones that make the difference in the end.

— Gally ™ (@AFCGally) September 19, 2020