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Daily Mirror
Daily Mirror
Sport
ibrahim mustapha

Thomas Partey's demand of Arsenal teammates after thrilling West Ham fightback

Thomas Partey has issued a rallying cry to his Arsenal teammates in the wake of their chaotic 3-3 draw against West Ham.

The Gunners made a sluggish start at the London Stadium and found themselves 3-0 down in little over half half an hour.

However, Partey and his team rallied and battled their way back into the game to secure an unlikely point late on.

Following a shaky start, the Ghanian star put in an impressive display in the middle of the park making more ball recoveries than any player on the pitch and making the joint most tackles for his side according to Opta.

However, speaking after the game, Partey admitted the team were punished for their poor start to the game.

"I think we could have done better from the beginning," he told Arsenal.com. "They dominated from the beginning and we were completely lost.

"I think they came out very strong. They overloaded us on the outside and they are strong with crossing.

"We allowed them too much time with the crossing and that hurt us a lot. Second half, we made sure we blocked all the crosses. From there we started to dominate.”

On-loan Manchester United midfielder Jesse Lingard but the Hammers in front before Jerrod Bowen made two as the Arsenal defence went to sleep at a free kick.

Thomas Soucek deflected in a third from Michail Antonio’s header but the same player also inadvertently handed the Gunners a lifeline when he redirected Alexander Lacazette’s shot beyond his own goalkeeper.

As Arsenal took control in the second half, West Ham defender Craig Dawson accidentally turned in Calum Chambers’ cross to make it 3-2 and the visitors side grabbed a deserved equaliser when Lacazette headed home Nicolas Pepe’s cross in the final ten minutes.

"We stuck to our plan,” Partey added.

“We know how to hurt them, we went all-out and everybody was fighting as a team. I think the spirit was high after we conceded three goals. From there, we started to give our all. But we have to start as we ended, in both halves.

"I think we have to learn from all these mistakes, we have to know when we have to go out strong, when we have to dominate from the beginning. It's important in the Premier League to start winning from the beginning to be in the top.

"You have to start good and end well."

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