Arsenal had their biggest win of the season when they crushed hosts West Ham 6-0 in round 24 of the Premier League.
This is also the second-biggest margin in the Premier League since the start of the season, only behind Newcastle's 8-0 win over Sheffield United on September 24, 2023. Following are seven other matches with a five-goal margin, including Aston Villa 6-1 Brighton, Man City 6-1 Bournemouth, Arsenal 5-0 Sheffield United, Burnley 5-0 Sheffield United, Fulham 5-0 Nottingham Forest, Fulham 5-0 West Ham, and Arsenal 5-0 Crystal Palace.
The big win at London Stadium today was also a sweet revenge for Arsenal against their city rivals. In the two meetings earlier this season, Arsenal lost 0-2 to West Ham in the Premier League and 1-3 in the fourth round of the English League Cup.
Center-back Gabriel Magalhaes (right) celebrates scoring the third goal for Arsenal in their 6-0 win over West Ham at London Stadium in the 24th round of the Premier League on February 11. Photo: AFP
The Gunners settled the match in the first half, controlling the ball 72%, finishing 15 times with seven on target, while West Ham only had one off-target shot.
After missed chances from Gabriel Magalhaes, Leandro Trossard and Martin Odegaard, the visitors opened the scoring in the 32nd minute. Declan Rice took a corner from the left for William Saliba to head past Alphonse Areola. It was the French centre-back's second goal in the Premier League this season, having scored in a 3-1 win over Burnley in November 2023.
In the 38th minute, Leandro Trossard - the player who was playing as a false 9 - retreated to the middle of the field and passed the ball long to Bukayo Saka who entered the penalty area and was fouled by Areola. VAR intervened to determine that Saka was not offside and Arsenal were awarded a penalty. The English midfielder took responsibility and he shot into the right corner to double the gap. At the age of 22, Saka reached the 50-goal mark in his 210th appearance for Arsenal in all competitions.
Before the first half ended, Gabriel and Leandro Trossard scored to help Arsenal go into the break with a 4-0 advantage. This was the first time the "Gunners" had led by four goals at half-time in an away match in the Premier League, since a 4-4 draw with Newcastle in February 2011.
In the second half, Arsenal slowed down but still scored two more goals. In the 63rd minute, Saka turned the ball into the middle, eliminated Emerson and shot to the near corner, leaving Areola rooted, scoring his tenth goal in the Premier League this season.
The visitors ended the day with a bang two minutes later. From a pass from Ben White, Trossard and Odegaard gave way to each other, accidentally allowing Rice to score a masterpiece with a one-touch finish into the far corner from 25 metres.
Rice scored the winning goal in Arsenal's 6-0 win over West Ham,...
But he refused to celebrate the goal out of respect for his old club. Photo: Reuters
The English midfielder raised his arms and did not celebrate the goal out of respect for his former club. Rice was born in London and grew up in the Chelsea academy. At the age of 15, the midfielder moved to West Ham, continuing to train until his debut for the first team in 2017. In total, he scored 15 goals in 245 matches for West Ham, before arriving at the Emirates Stadium in the summer of 2023 for a British transfer record fee of 137 million USD.
The 6-0 result was Arsenal's biggest away win in Premier League history, and West Ham's biggest home defeat in the competition. It was the second time David Moyes's side had conceded six goals at home in the Premier League, after Everton's 6-1 defeat to Arsenal in August 2009.
Arsenal continue their three-horse race, level on 52 points with Man City and one point behind Liverpool. On February 17, Arteta and his team will continue to visit Burnley.
Line-up :
West Ham : Areola, Coufal, Zouma (Mavropanos 46), Aguerd, Johnson, Emerson (Cresswell 76), Alvarez (Phillips 46), Kudus, Ward-Prowse, Soucek, Bowen.
Arsenal : Raya, White (Soares 77), Saliba, Gabriel, Kiwior, Rice (Elneny 67), Havertz, Odegaard, Saka (Nelson 67), Trossard (Nketiah 67), Martinelli (Nwaneri 77).
Hong Duy
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