3 positives & negatives from Arsenal’s 3-1 win over West Ham

Arsenal are back!

It has been way too long but we finally have our boys back playing some beautiful football. The Gunners came back from a first-half deficit in roaring fashion as they smashed home three goals in 16 second-half minutes with a ‘top of the league’ vigour.

Mikel Arteta’s side extended their lead atop the Premier League to seven points before Man City play Leeds on Wednesday night and there is so much to be excited about in North London, so let’s crack into some of the good and the bad.

3 positives & negatives from Arsenal’s 3-1 win over West Ham

Here are three positives and negatives from the 3-1 win over West Ham on Boxing Day.

Positive #1: The majestic Martin Ødegaard

Oh man, where do I begin? Martin Ødegaard was just magnificent. By far the best player on the pitch and it was not even close.

Ødegaard is at his best when he is making the team tick and he was absolutely on it against the Hammers. Not only that but he provided two assists bringing his season G/A total up to ten. His output is taking a step up which is fantastic for Arsenal, but it’s the little things that he does that make him great.

Erling Haaland earning a long rest during the World Cup break garnered a few headlines but Arsenal’s captain got a refresh as well and the midfielder seems keen to embark on a stellar second half to the 2022/23 season.

Negative #1: Penalty giveaway

Arsenal went into half-time down 1-0 off of a penalty given away by William Saliba.

It was a good call by Michael Oliver and was an unfortunate break for Arsenal because the game was being so well controlled up to that point. Saliba was caught out on that play and showed a bit of rust from his late return from the World Cup.

Luckily it didn’t matter in regard to the final outcome.

Continued on the next slide…