Arsenal Vs West Ham United: The Gunners Street For A Moment To Fight For The Top Of The Standings

The Arsenal players have the opportunity to climb to the top of the Premier League standings (photo: x @arsenal)

JAKARTA - Arsenal are likely to climb to the top of the Premier League standings, although only temporarily, at home to West Ham United at the Emirates Stadium on Saturday night 4 October in the London derby. Mikel Arteta's men are now only two points adrift of Liverpool, while West Ham began the era of Nuno Espirito Santo with a fairly valuable draw.

The visit to St James Park is usually a nightmare for Arsenal, but last weekend they were able to break that bad trend. Having been left behind by Nick Woltemade's goal for Newcastle United, Arsenal bounced back dramatically with a dead ball advantage and ensured a 2-1 win with Gabriel Magalhaes' header in the 96th minute.

The win felt important, not only because it removed Newcastle's "kutukan", but also because Liverpool slipped against Crystal Palace. That is, if Arsenal win again at home this weekend, they will top the table at least until Liverpool fight Chelsea a few hours later.

Positive momentum also continues in Europe. Arsenal beat Olympiacos 2-0 in the midweek Champions League, although that victory was not achieved easily. However, these results became the third straight win, and five of the last six matches were won in all competitions.

On the other hand, West Ham came with a unique note. They won their last two visits to Emirates Stadium without conceding, including last season's 1-0 win through Jarrod Bowen's single goal. Only Manchester City (2018) has beaten Arsenal three times in a row at home in Premier League history, and West Ham had a chance to match that record.

However, the current reality is far from ideal for the Hammers. After winning just one win from six league games, Graham Potter was sacked. His successor, Nuno Espirito Santo, made his debut with a 1-1 draw at Everton's headquarters. The result gave little hope, but West Ham are still stuck in the relegation zone with four points, all from away matches.

Unfortunately, the statistics are not in West Ham's favor. They hold the record for the most losses in the London derby in the Premier League, namely 134 defeats, and eight of the last 11 matches against their fellow capital team ended in defeat.

Arsenal got a bit of bad news. Gabriel Magalhaes, the winner at Newcastle, was pulled out with a minor injury against Olympiacos. But Mikel Arteta is optimistic that the Brazilian defender can perform. Piero Hincapie is still sidelined due to a groin injury, while Noni Madueke (lutut), Kai Havertz (lutut), and Gabriel Jesus (Legamentera) can only be back in a few months.

On the front lines, Bukayo Saka is preparing to record his 200th appearance in the Premier League. Interestingly, Thierry Henry is the only Arsenal player to have scored in his 200th Premier League match, in 2005.

Turning to West Ham, Tomas Soucek is still serving a ban on competing for the third time due to a red card against Tottenham. Aaron Wan-Bissaka is also doubtful about appearing due to problems in his stomach. The rest, Nuno was able to field the same squad against Everton, including Jarrod Bowen, who has a good record against Arsenal with five goals in his career, including the winner of last season's win at Emirates.

Arsenal is in a positive trend, with Martin Odegaard's creativity becoming the team's main bike. If they are able to create many opportunities like against Olympiacos, they are believed to be able to score more than one goal.

West Ham did have a proud away record to Emirates in the last two seasons, but seeing their poor form this season, it's hard to imagine Bowen and his friends could repeat the surprise.

Derby London could be Arsenal's perfect warm-up game to send hard messages in the title race, as well as add to West Ham's suffering that is still trying to get out of the abyss of relegation.

Arsenal (approximate):Raya; Timber, Saliba, Gabriel, Calafiori; Odegaard, Zubimendi, Rice; Saka, Gyokeeres, Eze

West Ham United (estimates): Arenola; Walker-Peters, Mavropanos, Kilman, Diouf; Magassa; Bowen, Fernandes, Paqueta, Summerville; Fullkrug

Score prediction: Arsenal 2-0 West Ham United