In early November of last year, the Hammers welcomed a high-flying Arsenal to The London Stadium for a tense clash in the fourth round of the Carabao Cup.
Playing a heavily rotated side, Mikel Arteta and his squad were full of confidence, coming off a 5-0 win against Sheffield United and sitting top of the Premier League.
On the other hand, David Moyes’ men were struggling to regain the delightful form they once had at the start of the campaign, losing 3 consecutive matches in a row - the most recent at the time being a 1-0 loss to a struggling Everton at home - a win was vital!
Story of the match
The first chance of the game came within the first 5 minutes, as Lucas Paqueta saw a through ball, intended for Jarrod Bowen, over hit comfortably into the hands of Aaron Ramsdale.
However the Gunners were quick to respond, as a Reece Nelson free-kick was met by German forward Kai Havertz, who’s eyes lit up as the ball sailed under the crossbar, before it was met by the fingertips of Fabianski in goal.
With both teams pushing for the opener, Edson Alvarez hoofed the ball up the pitch towards his former Ajax teammate Mohammed Kudus, whom tumbled to the ground as Gabriel headed the ball away for a West Ham corner.
The whole of the London Stadium elevated as Jarrod Bowen in-swung the corner into the box, former Brighton defender Ben White was unfortunate to glance the ball back towards his own goal, and past Aaron Ramsdale, giving the Hammers an unexpected 1-0 lead at home.
The deadlock finally broken, White had the chance to redeem himself as another Arsenal free-kick met the defenders head, hovering in the air before being flicked over the bar by Fabianski once again.
Another chance came the Gunners way minutes later, as Eddie Nketiah missed the chance to level the score, blazing Zinchenko’s corner over the crossbar, rolling off the roof of the net.
With the first half coming to a close, the travelling side had work to do in the second 45 - chances coming a plenty but the finishing product being the let down.
The first action of the second half caused concerns for Arsenal, as a well played though ball from Paqueta met the feet of Jarrod Bowen whom rifled the shot into the palms of Aaron Ramsdale - Ben White also doing his bit, as he cleared the ball from the path of Mohammed Kudus who was so close to tapping it in for 2-0.
Met with the both boo’s and applause, former West Ham United captain ‘Declan Rice’ began to warm up down the touch line, awaiting his return to the pitch he was once so familiar with before his move up North London to Arsenal for a fee of £100 million.
It only took the Hammers 5 minutes within the second half to extend their lead by 2–0, as a superb ball from Nayef Aguerd found Mohammed Kudus, whom danced past Zincenko before rifling the ball through the legs of Gabriel and past Ramsdale into the bottom left corner.
From cheers and celebration to boos and hollers, Declan Rice made his first steps onto the pitch of The London Stadium since May - a traitor for some and a hero for many.
Only 3 minutes later, West Ham stole the ball yet again, as Mohammed Kudus fought off Tomiyasu to find Jarrod Bowen down the wing, picking out Coufal, who overlapped the no.20 before crossing the ball into the box, only for it to be met by the head of Ben White.
As the ball sailed away from the Gunners no.4 head, the defender was unlucky to discover that the ball had found the foot of Bowen, whom took a sweet touch before rifling the ball off the hip of Kiwior and past Aaron Ramsdale to make it 3-0 to the good.
From this point onwards, the Hammers looked to see out the rest of the game and let Arsenal control the majority of the possession.
As the game began to dwindle way from the Gunners, the away end began to empty out much to the home fans delight.
Winning a free-kick in a dangerous area, Arsenal had the chance to finally grab a consolation goal, however Odegaard’s pathetic effort found itself hitting the claret and blue wall - triggering many cheers from the Hammers fans.
However Arsenal finally found their fortune, as a cross from Fabio Vieria was tapped away by the substituted Martin Odegaard to conclude the match at 3-1 - a night to remember for the Hammers as they progressed to the quarter-finals of the Carabao Cup.
Player of the Match - Jarrod Bowen
Adopting the role of a striker on the night, Jarrod Bowen was a constant brute force against a challenging Arsenal defence.
Involved in the creation of all three goals on the night, the Hammers no.20 left the pitch both battered and proud - progressing his side to the next round of the EFL Cup whilst knocking out a feared Arsenal side.
Can the Hammers replicate this fine performance against Arsenal at home in hopes of turning around their season?
