Arsenal keep pace at the top

A quick-fire goal by Eduardo and an inspirational effort from Emmanuel Adebayor proved the difference in a game that West Ham deserved a lot more from.

Arsenal maintained their top-of-the-table status with a 2-0 win over London rivals West Ham United, but matters rarely went their way in a match that the Hammers should have at least drawn.

Eduardo’s instinctive finish from Fabregas’ cross gave the Gunners the lead (3). But West Ham refused to buckle and should have equalised on a number of occasions.

However, Emmanuel Adebayor made the East Londoners pay with an outstanding curled lob from the bye-line after deceiving Robert Green (21).

Once again the Hammers fought back and could have clawed their way back into the game, but a number of their efforts were either blocked off the line or fell just the wrong side of the posts.

First Half

A better start couldn’t have been envisaged by the capacity crowd at the Emirates Stadium as Arsenal scored three minutes into the match.

West Ham had hardly touched the ball before Thomas Rosicky slipped Cesc Fabregas down the right-flank. The Spaniard looked up and picked out an unmarked Eduardo with a precise cross-pass, and then looked on in admiration as the Brazilian-born Croat striker showed great technique to chest the ball down before applying his customary cool finishing ability to slide the ball past a hapless Robert Green (3).

The goal raised the roof inside the ground, but in-truth it was a defensive calamity from the Hammers to allow Eduardo the space to score.

But West Ham bounced back and only ten minutes later came within inches from equalising. Mark Noble and Anton Ferdinand tried to repeat the goal-scoring trick they managed against Chelsea, with Noble putting a precise ball onto the defender’s head from a corner, but Gael Clichy was athletic enough to clear the ball off the line.

On the 20th minute, the East London outfit almost un-did the North Londoners again, but this time with a slick passing move that finished with former Gunner Fredrick Ljungberg turning and firing a near-post shot that Manuel Almunia saved.

Only a minute later and Arsenal delivered a sickening body-punch, although one that left everyone gawping in awe. Clichy’s long-ball had Green rushing out to claim the ball, only for Emmanuel Adebayor to sneak in first and head the ball past the keeper. But with the ball tight to the bye-line, Adebayor took aim and curled the ball from an impossible angle over the covering the defender and into the net off the far-post (21).

The goal was roundly clapped by all and reminded the more intuitive Arsenal fans of a sublime effort performed by ex-Gunner Kanu, who scored a replica goal on his way to a hat-trick against Chelsea a few years back.

West Ham once again tried to bounce back into the game, with Noble curling a corner for Matthew Upson, but the defender’s goal-bound header was blocked by Kolo Toure.

Alan Curbishley’s men commendably fought back into the game and forced another great chance through full-back John Pantsil, whose overhead kick beat Almunia but not the post.

The score-line at half-time didn’t reflect the way the match went, but a West Ham player did receive the biggest cheer of the match, as Ljungberg was widely applauded from both sets of fans after being forced from the pitch with an injury.

Second Half

The second 45 minutes continued in the same rich vein of free-flowing fast football that its predecessor did, but only this time it was West Ham starting the brighter.

Within a minute and West Ham once again failed to apply the crucial final touch on a great opportunity, as George McCartney somehow managed to flick Noble’s near-post corner an inch wide of the post from six yards out.

Thankfully the match didn’t take a break from the relentless pace that had been set.

Both sides continued to trade swift, slick passing patters, as well as a fair few stinging tackles.

Arsenal came close to increasing their lead via long-range shots from Toure and Fabregas, plus another cute lob from Adebayor that beat Green but bounced wide of the far-post.

But West Ham responded in kind, with Pantsil and lone-forward Carlton Cole firing shots from outside of the area that had Almunia scrambling across his goal.

Just past the hour-mark and Eduardo appealed, unsuccessfully, with half of the Emirates crowd after stumbling in the box from a tug on the shirt by Lucas Neill.

The striker received the game’s second biggest standing ovation when he was replaced shortly later by Theo Walcott.

The young England international made an instant impact as he skipped away from Noble and then past Neill’s challenge, but his eventual shot was weak and saved comfortably by Green.

The Hammers bought Dean Ashton on late in the game but there was not much the bulky forward could do to change the way the match was going.

The final whistle was sounded minutes later to signal the fact that Arsenal enter the New Year as league leaders.