Arsenal 0-2 West Ham United: Five Talking Points
Arsenal welcomed West Ham United to the Emirates in their inaugural Premier League fixture of the season, but were shocked by the Hammers 2-0. Petr Cech had a horrid official debut for the Gunners which saw him concede two goals, as Wengers men struggled to find a cutting edge to their attacks.Dimitri Payet made his first Premier League appearance since joining from Marseille in the summer, and16-year-old Reece Oxford got his first run-out for the Hammers in the central defensive midfield position. Despite maintaining possession for most of the game and creating some good openings, the Gunners were vulnerable from set pieces once again and paid for their disorganisation in defence.A Kouyate goal in the first half followed by low driven effort by Mauro Zarate sealed the three points for the Hammers, who won their first game at the Emirates since they first visited the stadium inbeginning of the 2006/07 season.Here are the major talking points from the game:
#1 Cech\'s disappointing home debut
Petr Cech joined the Gunners for £11 million from Chelsea in the summer, and there were many suggestions that this signing could be the one to help Arsenal pick up their first Premier League title in over a decade. But all those suggestions fell flat after Cech’s miserable performance in his home debut at the Emirates, which saw him concede two very saveable chances.
Arsenal conceded the first goal in the 42nd minute, when Cech failed to parry a Payet delivery away from the box. Kouyate punished the lax defending by Arsenal to power the ball home into the back of the net, after an outstretched Cech completely missed the ball.
Cech also allowed West Ham to double the lead in the 57th minute, when he couldn’t prevent Zarate from finishing a low driven shot into the right corner. He was a virtual spectator as the Arsenal defense failed for a second-straight time, allowing Zarate to pick his shot from outside the box.
The performance was disappointing and unexpected from Cech, who entered this match having conceded just 2 goals in the past 7 Premier League games.