West Ham fell to their first defeat under new head coach Nuno Espirito Santo as they were comfortably beaten 2-0 by Arsenal at the Emirates.
Arsenal dominated the first-half, with Bukayo Saka seeing his early effort ruled offside, and they eventually found the breakthrough after 38 minutes as Declan Rice finished on the rebound.
A sloppy challenge from El Hadji Malick Diouf on Jurrien Timber then gave Saka the opportunity to double Arsenal’s advantage from the penalty spot in the 66th minute.
Having rescued a draw away to Everton in Nuno’s first game in charge, West Ham were given a reality check by Arsenal, who climbed to the top of the Premier League table with a confident performance.
West Ham look more committed
It’s early days for Nuno and West Ham, but already, there is a noticeable improvement in the hunger and commitment on show.
Compare West Ham’s performance this afternoon to the one they put in against Chelsea, where Todibo was caught jogging back as Enzo Fernandez coasted in for the Blues’ third goal, and you can already begin to see the impact Nuno is having, even if just by providing a fresh energy.
West Ham were ultimately outplayed by Arsenal, but there were examples across the pitch of players re-energised.
Aaron Wan Bissaka, having earlier harried Gabriel into conceding possession high up the pitch, made an excellent block to deny Leandro Trossard late in the first-half. His efforts were backed up by Konstantinos Mavropanos, whose head was a magnet for the ball, and the Greek centre-half was first to the danger as Riccardo Calafiori’s shot cannoned back off the post in first-half stoppage-time.
Lucas Paqueta and Crysencio Summerville shielded the ball well to win fouls and relieve pressure on the West Ham defence, while Mateus Fernandes battled away in the midfield.
These are the basics that were sorely lacking under Potter, and they will be fundamental to Nuno building a more resolute team than the one he took charge of last week.
Hammers showing signs of improvement from corners
West Ham’s struggles from corners are well-documented - no team has conceded more goals from corners in the Premier League this season.
Nuno said in his pre-match comments that West Ham’s set-piece issues could become psychological if they were not addressed quickly.
Unsurprisingly, set-piece organisation has been a keen focus for Nuno since arriving at the club last Saturday, and there were signs of the Portuguese’s influence as West Ham dealt well with a number of Arsenal corners.
Up against the league’s form team from corners over the past three seasons, this was as daunting a challenge as Nuno could have asked for to test a week’s worth of work on the training ground.
West Ham adopted a zonal approach when defending corners at the Emirates, with Areola coming off his line to punch the ball clear while his defence blocked the late runners.
Areola’s performances have been questioned this season, but he dominated his area well amidst a barrage of Arsenal deliveries.
This game was never going to provide much indication of how West Ham will fare under Nuno, but they are making small steps forward.
Ward-Prowse and Todibo’s days are numbered
Nuno would not commit to saying that James Ward-Prowse or Jean-Clair Todibo, who didn’t travel with the squad for Monday’s draw with Everton, did not figure in his plans during his pre-match press conference.
However, the pair’s omission from the squad against Arsenal is as clear an indication that neither player has a future at the club.
Nuno is still trying to settle on a squad he can rely on, but in snubbing the pair in successive games, he has made a very strong statement.
A new era is afoot at West Ham, as evidenced by the decision to bring academy graduates Freddie Potts and Callum Marshall off the bench, and Ward-Prowse, key to Potter’s setup, represents a vision of the past they are desperately trying to move away from.
Marshall’s introduction up front ahead of Callum Wilson was another statement move by Nuno, who opted for youth ahead of experience as West Ham chased the game.
Todibo, whose deal at West Ham was made permanent this summer, already seems surplus to requirements. The French centre-half is West Ham’s sixth most expensive signing ever, and yet he appears unlikely to make 50 appearances for the club.
His signature is reflective of the excess and waste of Tim Steidten’s two-and-a-half-year stint as technical director, for which West Ham are still paying the price.
