Arsenal returned to Premier League action with a confident win against West Ham on Boxing Day and the Gunners received high praise following their comeback, with Declan Rice and Thierry Henry both agreeing that Mikel Arteta’s side can go all the way this season.
The Boxing Day victory for Arsenal was anything but easy, as they went in at half time 1-0 down after William Saliba gave away a penalty for a reckless challenge on Jarred Bowen which Saïd Benrahma dispatched shortly before the break.
Arsenal showed their resolve in the second half however and in a confident display they came out 3-1 winners thanks to goals from Gabriel Martinelli, Bukayo Saka and Eddie Nketiah.
The noise inside Emirates Stadium when @gabimartinelli gave us the lead 🤩 pic.twitter.com/Lr43NopQmh
— Arsenal (@Arsenal) December 27, 2022
The win for Arsenal increased the gap between them and their nearest rivals to 7 points, with Newcastle just above Manchester City on 33 points and City set to play Leeds on Wednesday night.
Arsenal’s comeback win certainly impressed on Monday night, as club legend Thierry Henry came out with high praise for his former side and especially striker Eddie Nketiah following the game:
“Yes, we are here to stay. It is important to say we have a team. Arsenal fans have been waiting for a team to compete. Not one or two players, we have a squad.
“You win a title with a squad. That is very important and what Eddie Nketiah showed tonight, he showed that he can be the answer for the time being.
Eddie Nketiah's last 11 starts at the Emirates 🤝 11 goals pic.twitter.com/BkiThxwu3X
— ESPN UK (@ESPNUK) December 26, 2022
“We don’t know how long exactly the time being is. However long they want him to be the answer. For the time being we’ll have to wait for Gabriel to come back, but that’s exactly what Eddie did.”
It wasn’t just Henry who was impressed with the Gunners’ performance however, as West Ham captain Declan Rice spoke highly of his Boxing Day opposition when questioned if they could go all the way this year.
“One hundred per cent, I think they are a top team.
“You can see they are coached incredibly well, they have a lot of attacking talent, a young squad and they could go the whole way for sure.”
Arsenal’s next challenge is Brighton, a team they have had many struggles with in the past who they play on New Years Eve. This new look Arsenal team could make light work of Brighton however and if they want to keep their title hopes alive, they’ll certainly need all three points against the Seagulls.
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