Arsenal 2-1 West Ham United: Player ratings as Eddie Nketiah's late strike helps Gunners maintain their winning start to the season | Premier League 2020-21

Saturday evening provided us with a London derby between Arsenal and West Ham United. Having won their opening fixture 3-0 at Craven Cottage, the Gunners came into this encounter with a lot of confidence and were looking to sustain momentum. As for the Hammers, things have been disappointing on and off the pitch and fans were expecting a huge response at the Emirates.

The match started in a dull manner with West Ham standing firm against a rhythm-less Arsenal side. Against the run of play, the Gunners would take the lead through an Alexandre Lacazette header in the 25th minute. The visitors would deservedly level up the game through a Michail Antonio tap-in just before the half time.

West Ham would dominate the rest of the match but would rue their missed chances as a late Eddie Nketiah winner gave all 3 points to Arsenal.

Here are the player ratings from the Premier League encounter between Arsenal and West Ham.

Arsenal player ratings against West Ham United

GK: Bernd Leno (6.5/10)

Now firmly established as the club’s number 1 keeper, Bernd Leno put in an assured performance despite being under much pressure. West Ham bombarded his box with long ball after long ball but the German stood firm regardless.

RWB: Hector Bellerín (6/10)

It felt like we’ve been seeing the best of Hector Bellerín in recent weeks but tonight he, like most of his teammates, was sloppy in possession. The Spaniard gave the ball away 12 times and lost out on 6 duels in a performance he’ll be happy to forget.

RCB: Rob Holding (6.5/10)

It was confirmed by Mikel Arteta that Rob Holding was set to move to Newcastle United on loan this season. However, the Spaniard made a U-turn on the deal and decided instead to give Holding a run in the first team. The 24-year-old continued that run against West Ham with 3 interceptions, 2 tackles and 5 duels in a solid performance.

CB: Gabriel Magalhaes (7/10)

Arsenal's new signing Gabriel Magalhaes held up well against a physical West Ham side

After a dream debut, Gabriel Magalhaes was given a much tougher test against the Hammers. Up against a physical side, the 22-year-old got a truer introduction to the Premier League. The Brazilian, however, stood up to the task with an impressive performance that saw him make 5 clearances, block 3 shots and intercept 2 passes.

LCB: Sead Kolašinac (5.5/10)

Sead Kolasinac did not have a great game for Arsenal

Kieran Tierney developed a hip problem in the warm-up, which opened the door for Sead Kolašinac to start his first game of the season. This switch reminded Arsenal fans about the gulf in quality between the two, reinforcing the notion that he needs to be sold this summer.

I pray tonight was Sead Kolasinac's last game in an Arsenal shirt. pic.twitter.com/wueexEKoqb

— 🎗 (@ArsenalPresser) September 19, 2020

LWB: Bukayo Saka (6.5/10)

The youngster received his first start of the season in place on Ainsley Maitland-Niles on the left. Although classed as an LWB, Bukayo Saka spent most of the game in central areas. He didn’t have the best of games but the youngster still managed to grab the pre-assist for both goals as it was his incisive passing that put Arsenal in those favourable positions.

RCM: Dani Ceballos (6.5/10)

Brought in to replace Mohamed Elneny, Dani Ceballos struggled to settle into the game at first. However, in the second half, the Spaniard stepped up his performance both on the ball and off it.

In a performance of two halves, Ceballos made 91 passes, 3 clearances, intercepted 2 passes and provided an assist for the winning goal.

LCM: Granit Xhaka (6/10)

Uncharacteristically under Arteta, Granit Xhaka was loose with his touches and often sloppy with his passes. In a frustrating performance, the Switzerland international lost the ball 14 times but made up for it through 106 passes and the willingness to always receive the ball despite a rampant West Ham press.

RW: Willian (6/10)

In his home debut for the Gunners, the Brazilian gave us a less spectacular performance than last week. Willian completed 79% of his passes, created 1 chance while losing possession 14 times.

LW: Pierre Emerick-Aubameyang (6.5/10)

After finally putting pen to paper on a new contract, Pierre Emerick-Aubameyang put in a selfless performance where he found himself providing for others more than himself. The 31-year-old made 5 crosses, created 3 chances and provided 1 assist.

ST: Alexandre Lacazette (7/10)

Alexandre Lacazette once again opened the scoring for Arsenal

Alexandre Lacazette answered all claims of his lack of prolificacy against West Ham. For the second consecutive week, the Frenchman opened the scoring for Arsenal.

In a 3-4-3, Lacazette’s role has required him to drop deep and link up with midfield, which means he spends more of his game holding up the ball than in the box. He did that with due diligence in another hard-working display on Saturday.

Substitutes:

Nicolas Pepe: 5.5/10

Brought on with 25 minutes to go, Nicolas Pepe was tasked with creating a spark in a lacklustre Arsenal attack. Instead, the Ivorian produced a mixed bag by providing 3 crosses, completing 1 dribble but also losing the ball 7 times.

Eddie Nketiah: 6.5/10

The youngster came on and did what was asked of him – win the match. If Eddie Nketiah wants to become a first-team starter for Arsenal, he must continue to be a threat in the final third like he was against West Ham. In just 13 minutes on the pitch, Nketiah managed to complete 1 dribble, win 1 duel and score the winning goal.

David Luiz: N/A

The Brazilian was brought on in the dying minutes to sure up things at the back.

West Ham United player ratings against Arsenal

GK: Lukasz Fabianski (6/10)

Lukasz Fabianski only made one save against Arsenal

For the first 20 minutes of the game, Lukasz Fabianski didn’t have much to do. By the end of it, the former Arsenal keeper had only made 1 save but conceded 2 goals.

RWB: Ryan Fredericks (6/10)

It’s down the left-hand side that Arsenal create most of their chances, so Ryan Fredericks knew he’d be in for a tough time. However, the exclusion of Maitland-Niles and Tierney made his job much easier as Arsenal lacked their usual rhythm and had to target Issa Diop instead.

RCB: Issa Diop (5.5/10)

Issa Diop would be disappointed that both Arsenal goals came through his channel

Although he didn’t make any mistakes, Issa Diop can be disappointed that both Arsenal goals came through his channel. He was left powerless to stop the pull-backs from both Aubameyang and Ceballos for the two goals.

CB: Angelo Ogbonna (6/10)

As the most experienced defender at West Ham, Angelo Ogbonna was tasked with marshalling Alexandre Lacazette and organising his back five. He did that well for the majority of the game but Arsenal’s quality was always going to shine through.

LCB: Aaron Cresswell (6/10)

Deployed in the unfamiliar role of an LCB, Aaron Cresswell perhaps performed the best of his defenders. Any time Arsenal tried to attack down his side, they found no joy as he was able to limit space for Willian and Bellerín, knowing when to go tight and when to back off.

LWB: Arthur Masuaku (5.5/10)

In a role that highlights his best qualities, Arthur Masuaku flattered to deceive throughout the game. Instead of taking on his man regularly, Masuaku often played it safe and failed to be effective in attack.

RDM: Tomas Soucek (6/10)

Tomas Soucek made runs into the Arsenal box at every opportunity

Many have labelled Tomas Soucek as the new Marouane Fellaini in this David Moyes side. The defensive midfielder was utilised mainly for his height as he made runs into the box at every opportunity. The 25-year-old won 4 aerial duels across the 90 minutes.

LDM: Declan Rice (6.5/10)

As the team’s midfield controller, Declan Rice did his best to keep possession in the rare occasions that West Ham had Arsenal penned in.

In a hard-working performance, Rice had 60 touches of the ball, completed 98% of his passes, won 5 duels, made 4 clearances and created 2 chances.

RW: Jarrod Bowen (6/10)

Alongside Antonio, Jarrod Bowen was perhaps West Ham’s best player against Arsenal. His enthusiasm, industrious nature and eye for a pass made him a constant thorn in the side of Arsenal’s defence. In a spirited display, Bowen provided 6 crosses, completed 15 passes and made 2 tackles.

LW: Pablo Fornals: (5/10)

Hooked off with a couple of minutes to go, Pablo Fornals had a forgettable game. The Spaniard did nothing worth noting throughout his 88 minutes on the pitch.

ST: Michail Antonio: (7.5/10)

Michail Antonio was rewarded with a goal against Arsenal for his tireless runs into the channels

Often tasked with much of the donkey work for West Ham’s attack, Michail Antonio once again led by example upfront. His runs into the channels and scraps for each loose ball were rewarded with a goal on the stroke of half time.

In another industrious display, Antonio attempted 4 shots on goal, hit the post once, won 5 duels and scored 1 goal.

Substitutes:

Andriy Yarmolenko: N/A

The Ukrainian tried to get involved in the game but Arsenal’s organisation didn’t give him the space to do so.

Sebastien Haller: N/A

Haller was brought on in the dying minutes to give the Hammers more of an aerial presence as they resorted to long balls.

Felipe Anderson: N/A

The Brazilian didn’t have enough time to make an impact on the game.