Nuno Espirito Santo dealt ‘get to work’ West Ham warning after Arsenal defeat
Nuno Espirito Santo’s side struggled in the 2-0 defeat to Arsenal at the Emirates Stadium.
The Hammers had just 32 per cent possession against Mikel Arteta’s side, who caused all sorts of problems and amassed an expected goals of 2.73.
Declan Rice scored the opener in his fifth game against West Ham since making the switch to Arsenal for £100million in 2023.
Aaron Wan-Bissaka stood out for West Ham in an improved defensive display, but plenty of problems still remain for Nuno to sort out going into the international break.
Chris Sutton blasts West Ham’s performance vs Arsenal
James Ward-Prowse was dropped by Nuno again for the game against the Hammers after missing Monday evening’s game against Everton.
The Hammers stuck with Soungoutou Magassa and Mateus Fernandes in midfield, but the pair were overrun by Rice and Martin Zubimendi.
Bukayo Saka caused problems for West Ham and manufactured the Gunners’ first goal and scored their second from the penalty spot.
Writing for BBC Sport, Chris Sutton was critical of West Ham’s performance, despite a spirited showing against Arteta’s side.
| Arsenal | Club | West Ham |
| 2.73 | Expected goals | 0.49 |
| 21 | Shots | 4 |
| 5 | Shots on target | 0 |
| 565 | Passes | 263 |
He wrote: “Nuno Espirito Santo has one hell of a job on his hands. West Ham weren’t in the game today, it was so comfortable for Arsenal.
“It could have and perhaps should have been more. Now he has time to really get to work over the international break.”
Arsenal had another penalty shout for handball turned away by referee John Brooks, but apart from that, the Hammers dealt with their attacking threat well.
- Read more: Nuno may have made up mind on Niclas Fullkrug already after what happened in Arsenal defeat
Chris Sutton’s comments are harsh on West Ham
Going into the games against Everton and Arsenal, supporters knew it would be tough to get a result in either fixture.
West Ham managed to get a point against David Moyes’ Everton and still put in a strong showing against Arsenal.
Arteta’s side were restricted to a goal from a controversial penalty and the first half rebounded strike from Rice to win the game.
Against all odds, Nuno appears to have sorted his side’s problems of conceding from set pieces, which shows that they are already making good progress.
Now, the Hammers must solve their issue up front, with neither Niclas Fullkrug nor Callum Wilson proving their worth.
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