“I won’t lose my sleep over the loss, I know I fumbled for the first goal but you can’t blame me, instead blame him”- Arsenal defender Calafiori expressed disappointment as he pleaded with Arsenal fans and put blame on ONE teammate for West Ham loss
“I won’t lose my sleep over the loss, I know I fumbled for the first goal but you can’t blame me, instead blame him”- Arsenal defender Calafiori expressed disappointment as he pleaded with Arsenal fans and put blame on ONE teammate for West Ham loss
Arsenal produced a diabolical performance at home to West Ham on Saturday afternoon.
The Gunners struggled to break down a stubborn Hammers low block, creating few clear-cut opportunities from their 20 shots.
West Ham ultimately ran out 1-0 winners thanks to a Jarrod Bowen header on the stroke of half-time, condemning Mikel Arteta’s team to their third defeat of the season in the Premier League.
Martin Odegaard was berated for his performance against the Irons, delivering a meek display that warranted criticism.
However, one player let Arsenal down more than the Norwegian.
Declan Rice was awful in Arsenal’s loss to West Ham
Declan Rice was booed by West Ham fans throughout the game, and this hostility evidently impacted his outing.
The Englishman was poor in possession, opting to pass backwards when receiving the ball in tight spaces on the edge of the West Ham box, and offered little in regard to preventing transitions.
Stopping counter-attacks is usually his superpower, but he was often lumbering back slowly as he attempted to put out fires, and this left Arsenal vulnerable at times.
Mohammed Kudus had a field day breaking away from the Gunners’ midfield and driving upfield, and this was largely Rice’s fault.
The former West Ham man gave the ball away in the lead-up to Bowen’s goal, before failing to track the winger’s run into the box.
Rice was ball-watching as his ex-teammate strolled past him to nod into an empty net, giving Arsenal a mountain to climb in the encounter.
Eventually hooked for producing such a disappointing and flat showing, Oleksandr Zinchenko was introduced in midfield in place of Rice in the 56th minute
Declan Rice’s statistics vs West Ham
On the eye, it felt like Rice offered little on the ball, while also leaving Thomas Partey exposed as Arsenal’s deepest midfielder on numerous occasions
Not even attempting a single tackle, Rice made just one interception, offering none of his typical robustness or defensive output.
Arteta would hope for more than 25 completed passes from his central midfielder in a game where his team is dominating the ball, yet Rice was peripheral during Arsenal’s long periods of possession.
For reference, Odegaard completed 60 passes in his 90 minutes on the pitch.
Rice has been in excellent form in the last few months, so Arteta will hope this was merely a blip, although it certainly would’ve raised alarm bells.
