West Ham secured their first Premier League win at the Emirates Stadium since 2015 and damaged Arsenal\u2019s title hopes with a surprise 2-0 London derby victory on Thursday evening.<\/strong><\/p>\n A calamitous scramble in the Gunners box ended when Tomas Soucek arrived to belt in the opener before Konstantinos Mavropanos flicked in James Ward-Prowse\u2019s corner to double the Hammers\u2019 lead.<\/p>\n Arsenal could not muster a response despite the likes of Leandro Trossard, Bukayo Saka and Gabriel Jesus having good opportunities, allowing Liverpool to grow a two-point lead at the top of the table at the conclusion of Gameweek 19.<\/p>\n West Ham showed threatening signs early on as Ward-Prowse fired goalwards from 20 yards, his effort just soaring over David Raya\u2019s goal.<\/p>\n Nice work from Ben White, Declan Rice and Martin Odegaard helped Mikel Arteta\u2019s side fashion their first major opening with the ball falling to Bukayo Saka, but the England winger\u2019s effort was fired disappointingly straight at Alphonse Areola.<\/p>\n While firmly against the run of play,\u00a0West Ham\u2018s rugged approach which also saw them win at fellow north London side Tottenham rewarded them as indecision in the home box provided Soucek with a chance on goal.<\/p>\n Emerson Palmieri\u2019s cross hit two defenders and deflected to Jarrod Bowen, who showed his presence of mind to lay the ball back to Soucek who rattled in confidently inside the box. The VAR check took unnecessarily long as checks were made on the ball staying in the field of play, but it was eventually given.<\/p>\n Arsenal\u00a0had been unbeaten in home league action in 2023\/24 before Thursday night and continued to probe and make chances, with Saka bringing an acrobatic save from Areola with a header.<\/p>\n An injury to Lucas Paqueta left West Ham without their talismanic Brazilian while the Gunners tried to walk in an equaliser. One opening saw Odegaard defer shot-taking responsibilities to Saka, then Gabriel Jesus and finally Gabriel Martinelli, who curled well wide.<\/p>\n Odegaard\u2019s inch-perfect pass slipped Saka in behind Angelo Ogbonna, leaving the 22-year-old bearing down on Areola. While his touch was inaccurate, Saka still struck the post before Trossard put the rebound wide.<\/p>\n Declan Rice nearly bagged what would have been a dream goal again his former side after receiving Trossard\u2019s pass, but the midfielder\u2019s strike from distance floated just over the bar.<\/p>\n Arsenal\u2019s profligacy in front of goal soon proved their downfall as one of their former players extended West Ham\u2019s lead. David Moyes\u2019 side once again struck with the home side in the ascendency, with Ward-Prowse\u2019s set-piece delivery proving crucial.<\/p>\n The former Southampton midfielder\u2019s corner was met powerfully by Mavropanos, whose brilliant header flew across the box into the opposite corner off the woodwork.<\/p>\n West Ham have been in remarkable form of late, picking up impressive wins against Spurs and Manchester United alongside heavy defeats to Fulham and Liverpool, but their stout defending could not be argued with as they inched their way towards all three points during the second half.<\/p>\n Saka\u2019s cross was tamely headed at Areola before the Brazilian ballooned another presentable opportunity in the air as Arsenal huffed and puffed unsuccessfully in search of a route back into the game.<\/p>\n Instead, it would be West Ham who were handed the best chance to score the match\u2019s third goal. Rice hacked down Emerson to gift his former side a penalty, but Raya enjoyed arguably his most confidence-boosting moment at Arsenal so far by beating away Said Benrahma\u2019s tame effort.<\/p>\n That was the last decisive action of the game, however, leaving Arsenal two points behind Liverpool at the top of the table. West Ham, meanwhile, move up to sixth.<\/p>\n Arsenal couldn\u2019t respond against West Ham \/ Marc Atkins\/GettyImages<\/p>\n GK: David Raya \u2013 7\/10\u00a0<\/strong>\u2013 Was again quite an anxious presence in the Arsenal box but did at least enjoy a convincing moment late on with the penalty save,<\/p>\n RB: Ben White \u2013 4\/10\u00a0<\/strong>\u2013 Clipped in some dangerous crosses but rarely went on the outside in attack and was a little lightweight in defence.<\/p>\n CB: William Saliba \u2013 5\/10<\/strong>\u00a0\u2013 Was dragged out wide before West Ham opened the scoring. Struggled with Bowen\u2019s power.<\/p>\n CB: Gabriel Magalhaes \u2013 5\/10<\/strong>\u00a0\u2013 Played his part in a mishap with Zinchenko and lacked decisiveness in one of his poorer games.<\/p>\n LB: Oleksandr Zinchenko \u2013 4\/10<\/strong>\u00a0\u2013 Surprisingly bad in possession given his renowned technical ability and also offered little muscle in defence.<\/p>\n CM: Martin Odegaard \u2013 7\/10<\/strong>\u00a0\u2013 One of Arsenal\u2019s brighter sparks, constantly demanding the ball and giving his all in a doomed attempt to get his side back into the game.<\/p>\n CM: Declan Rice \u2013 6\/10<\/strong>\u00a0\u2013 Was persistent and combative in the middle of the park but was outwitted at crucial moments, even if his late error wasn\u2019t punished by Benrahma.<\/p>\n CM: Leandro Trossard \u2013 5\/10<\/strong>\u00a0\u2013 Played in a deeper midfield role but still got five shots away. Failed to make the most of his opportunities.<\/p>\n RW: Bukayo Saka \u2013 6\/10<\/strong>\u00a0\u2013 Struck the post and showed no signs of shirking responsibility with nine shots taken, though five of those were blocked.<\/p>\n ST: Gabriel Jesus \u2013 4\/10<\/strong>\u00a0\u2013 Offers plenty in Arsenal\u2019s build-up but a steelier edge in front of goal was needed for Arteta\u2019s side on Thursday night.<\/p>\n LW: Gabriel Martinelli \u2013 5\/10<\/strong>\u00a0\u2013 A quiet game and couldn\u2019t cause Coufal enough grief before coming off after the hour.<\/p>\n SUB: Eddie Nketiah (64\u2032 for Martinelli) \u2013 6\/10<\/strong><\/p>\n SUB: Reiss Nelson (64\u2032 for Zinchenko) \u2013 5\/10<\/strong><\/p>\n SUB: Emile Smith Rowe (79\u2032 for Trossard) \u2013 5\/10<\/strong><\/p>\n Subs not used: Aaron Ramsdale, Cedric Soares, Jakub Kiwior, Jorginho, Mohamed Elneny, Ethan Nwaneri.<\/em><\/p>\n Mikel Arteta \u2013 4\/10\u00a0<\/strong>\u2013 Arsenal kept battering West Ham but the cool head to convert didn\u2019t show up, while Arteta\u2019s changes from the bench couldn\u2019t inspire any sort of comeback.<\/p>\n Soucek put West Ham in front \/ Catherine Ivill\/GettyImages<\/p>\n GK: Alphonse Areola \u2013 7\/10<\/strong>\u00a0\u2013 Made eight saves in total in a solid display, commanding his box well even if his shot-stopping was flimsy-looking at times.<\/p>\n RB: Vladimir Coufal \u2013 7\/10<\/strong>\u00a0\u2013 Strong and robust out wide, seeing off the challenge of Martinelli well. Made five headed clearances.<\/p>\n CB: Konstantinos Mavropanos \u2013 8\/10\u00a0<\/strong>\u2013 Flicked in brilliantly to double West Ham\u2019s lead and was on hand to clear danger whenever necessary.<\/p>\n CB: Angelo Ogbonna \u2013 7\/10<\/strong>\u00a0\u2013 Complemented Mavropanos\u2019 assured display by leading the defence and repelling crosses.<\/p>\n LB: Emerson Palmieri \u2013 7\/10<\/strong>\u00a0\u2013 His cross caused the scramble that led to Soucek\u2019s goal, while his endeavour gave Benrahma the chance to make it 3-0, though that opportunity was wasted.<\/p>\n CM: Edson Alvarez \u2013 7\/10\u00a0<\/strong>\u2013 A tower of strength in the middle of the park, making five tackles.<\/p>\n CM: Tomas Soucek \u2013 7\/10<\/strong>\u00a0\u2013 Got into the box to pounce on the loose ball and score and also did his bit in the defensive third.<\/p>\n RW: Mohammed Kudus \u2013 7\/10<\/strong>\u00a0\u2013 Won the ball back nine times for West Ham in a great defensive showing, though didn\u2019t get many chances to show his talent in the final third.<\/p>\n AM: James Ward-Prowse \u2013 7\/10<\/strong>\u00a0\u2013 Wicked delivery from wide areas proved crucial as he assisted Mavropanos\u2019 header.<\/p>\n LW: Lucas Paqueta \u2013 6\/10<\/strong>\u00a0\u2013 Had some fleeting involvements before a suspected hamstring injury brought his evening to a premature end.<\/p>\n ST: Jarrod Bowen \u2013 7\/10<\/strong>\u00a0\u2013 Showed great ingenuity to set up Soucek\u2019s opener and didn\u2019t give Arsenal\u2019s centre-backs any time to rest or settle.<\/p>\n SUB: Said Benrahma (33\u2032 for Paqueta) \u2013 5\/10\u00a0<\/strong>\u2013 Missed the penalty late on which would have really sweetened West Ham\u2019s victory.<\/p>\n Subs not used: Lukasz Fabianski, Ben Johnson, Aaron Cresswell, Pablo Fornals, Maxwel Cornet, Danny Ings, Thilo Kehrer, Divin Mubama.<\/em><\/p>\n David Moyes \u2013 9\/10<\/strong>\u00a0\u2013 Questions are constantly asked over Moyes\u2019 future with his West Ham contract up at the end of the season, but with recent wins over Tottenham, Man Utd and now Arsenal, he\u2019s due some respite from all that unwanted attention.<\/p>\n
\nHow the game unfolded<\/h3>\n
\nArsenal player ratings (4-3-3)<\/h2>\n
![\"Gabriel](\"https:\/\/www.ghanamma.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/12\/01hjsa8q5ssy15mpxv3y.jpg\" "\\"Gabriel")
<\/figure>\n
\nSubstitutes<\/h3>\n
\nManager<\/h3>\n
\nWest Ham United player ratings (4-2-3-1)<\/h2>\n
![\"Tomas](\"https:\/\/www.ghanamma.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/12\/01hjsa7gcs3cgqxrekws.jpg\" "\\"Tomas")
<\/figure>\n
\nSubstitutes<\/h3>\n
\nManager<\/h3>\n
\nPlayer of the match: Konstantinos Mavropanos (West Ham)<\/h3>\n