EPL 2016/17: West Ham United 1 – 5 Arsenal - Talking points
Arsenal played at the London Stadium for the first time this season on Saturday and the way the game panned out, it seems that their hosts were overly excited about their arrival. And one could see the graciousness of the hosts as they time and again kept it giving back to their opponents.
Calamitous defending and clinical finishing contributed to a massively one-sided game and the Hammers can have no complaints about their miserable performance. The Gunners seemed more prepared and more up for the game than their London neighbours and at times, the teams seemed miles apart, especially when Arsenal broke forward.
Goals from Sanchez, Ozil and Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain sandwiched the Andy Carroll goal, which in the end turned out to be inconsequential to the result.
#1 Scurrying Sanchez scores and shines at the London Stadium
Before the game, an image of Alexis Sanchez scurrying back to the dressing room in pre-match warm up must have been a cause of concern for all the watching viewers. However, that turned out to be a false alarm as Sanchez’s name appeared in the starting line-up.
The Chilean’s contribution to this Gunners side cannot be underestimated and Sanchez was at it again from the first blast of the whistle. Sanchez harried his opponents and ferreted around snapping at the Hammers defence causing them to constantly look over their shoulders.
For a team with aspirations to win the league, Sanchez is the embodiment of everything that is right with Arsenal. And the Chilean once again reposed the faith of his manager, as he was on hand to score his first hat-trick of the season.
The Chilean has already scored 13 goals and nine assists from 19 matches in all competitions this season. And his contribution to the team is unquestionable from an attacking perspective as he has been directly involved in six of Arsenal's past eight Premier League goals (five goals, one assist).
Along the way, he also had a leg in setting up Ozil’s opener. His performance left a beaming Arsene Wenger at the press conference and when questioned about the Chilean’s performance, the Frenchman hummed, “He has a killer instinct. You don't find many players like him. He can always surprise you. He also has great technique as well.”