In the afterglow of Arsenal's first win in 46 days it can be all too easy to forget how close they came to disaster.
Trailing to Angelo Ogbonna's deflected header the Gunners returned to their London Stadium dressing room at half-time wracked with the mental anguish of what appeared destined to be a 10th game in a row. Scoring the goals they needed to end their woes seemed beyond Freddie Ljungberg's side, who had converted over 60% possession against West Ham into just two shots, neither on target.
"You could feel in the first half we had no confidence," goalkeeper Bernd Leno said. "In the half-time we talked to each other and said we have to change something.
"The performance in the second half was impressive, we controlled the game, scored some nice goals, took our chances and it was well deserved. This result must give us confidence for the next weeks.
"Freddie was talking and analysing. He showed us some situations that we needed to be braver. We did this. It is good feeling, we all missed the feeling.
"He was calm but in a very straight way. It was not like everyone was not trying, but you could feel that we did not play in a free way and he made us more free to play. You could see this more in the second half. After the second and the third goal you could see how we can play with more confidence. This is the real Arsenal.
"From the first day he said he wanted to see laughing faces, to see a good atmosphere. We had a bad time, we are all human and it is not easy. It was not like we did not try, but it just did not work."
It took time but eventually that bravery shone through in nine exceptional minutes where Arsenal turned a 1-0 deficit into a 3-1 lead. There was no grand tactical switch from Ljungberg though minor tweaks included Leno kicking the ball longer more frequently to unlock the pace and direct running of his front three.
What changed was Arsenal simply moved with greater purpose. It only took one move. Lucas Torreira slipped in Sead Kolasinac, running far harder than his opponent Robert Snodgrass. Right-back Ryan Fredericks felt compelled to drift across and cover and that opened up the space from which Gabriel Martinelli slotted home the equaliser.
Six minutes later the simple act moving the ball at pace was enough to get Nicolas Pepe into position to score his first open play goal for the club. The Ivorian would then turn provider soon after, lofting an elegant ball over two West Ham defenders for Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang to volley home.
It was perhaps the only moment of genuine quality in the match, a reminder that Arsenal are capable of far, far more than they showed in their dreary nine match run without a win.
"At half-time, Freddie told us to play with a higher tempo," Aubameyang said. "It was tough but we have the quality in the squad, and if we believe in ourselves, we can go forward and win games.
"We will take this second half as an example for the rest of the season."
If nothing else Ljungberg has bought his employers time as they hunt for a permanent replacement for Unai Emery. Arsenal would like to make an appointment soon - Mikel Arteta is currently the leading contender - but their priority is to do so rationally and thoroughly.
The club hierarchy have faith in Ljungberg's ability to hold the fort and will welcome Leno's assessment of the interim head coach.
"I do not know what the club is deciding," the German said. "We only have to focus on now. Freddie is doing a very good job.
"The team know about his quality and the way they want to play. We want to play with possession, keep the ball and also press very high, and also with transitions.
"It is not our decision [over Ljungberg], it is a decision of the club."
If anyone has emerged from Arsenal's recent woes with their reputation enhanced it has been Leno, the Premier League's leading save-maker with 69 saves in just 16 games.
"It is not easy because of course I can save some balls but in the end we lost, we drew against smaller teams that we expected to win against," Leno said. "In the end I giving my best for the team and for the club, like everybody else.
"I can be happy with my performance in the last weeks, but I will keep working and hopefully I can help the team like this."
