Arsenal embarrass sorry West Ham in six-goal rout

PREMIER LEAGUE

WEST HAM 0

ARSENAL 6 (Saliba 32', Saka 41' (P), 63', Gabriel 44', Trossard 45+2', Rice 65')

FOUR goals in just 15 first-half minutes finished off West Ham’s latest attempt to derail Arsenal’s Premier League title aspirations. So one-sided was this London derby the half-time scoreline flattered David Moyes’ side. No wonder so many home fans chose to boycott the second half and not have to listen to the Arsenal supporters celebrate another day very much in the title race.

William Saliba’s 32nd-minute header from a corner was quickly followed by a Bukayo Saka penalty, a Gabriel set-piece header and a Leandro Trossard curler before the break. This was Mikel Arteta’s Arsenal at their best, just as they had been in dismantling league leaders Liverpool last Sunday.

The second-half target was to get to seven and move into second place ahead of Manchester City on goal difference. A second from Saka and a strike for the ages from former West Ham favourite Declan Rice made it six with 25 minutes to go. It was enough to record their biggest away win in the brief history of the Premier League, but not enough to move them up the table.

All this against a West Ham side progressing well in Europe and that would have gone sixth with a win. A third victory of the season over Arsenal, including their League Cup triumph here, was widely discussed before kick-off. Maybe Arteta’s often evocative pre-match team talk borrowed from Oscar Wilde this time… ”To lose to West Ham once is unfortunate, to lose twice to West Ham is careless, but to lose to West Ham three times in a season is….” 

A draw from a winning position here last season ultimately proved catastrophic for Arteta’s side momentum. A home defeat to Moyes’ men in