London-derby between the two under fire sides won by Arsenal

Arsenal won 3-1 against West Ham at the Emirates Stadium amidst continued protests against manager Arsene Wenger. Mesut Ozil’s goal and an assist were good enough for struggling West Ham side on a four match losing streak.

The match began slowly but started to gain momentum as it progressed. Arsenal showed real intent just before half-time and were all over the visitors but failed to score before break.

Equations changed when the first goal of the match was scored. West Ham’s stiff resistance was broken when Mesut Ozil scored in the 58th minute, his 10th goal of the season. Theo Walcott scored in the 68th minute to put Arsenal in a commanding position with a 2-0 lead. The goal was his 19th and Arsenal’s 100th goal of the season across all competitions. The build-up play that lead to the goal and the string of passes exchanged between Ozil and Sanchez displayed the game that vintage Arsenal have been famous for under Arsene Wenger. Next minute, a wonderful lofted pass from Sanchez fell to Bellerin but his shot on the half-volley went past grazing the outside of goal post. Substitute Giroud scored from the edge of the box in the 83rd minute to kill the game for West Ham.

Chelsea maintain lead at top of the League table

Meanwhile, leaders Chelsea defeated Manchester City 2-1 at Stamford Bridge to inch closer to the title. Eden Hazard scored two goals, one of them on a penalty follow-up, while Sergio Aguero scored City’s lone goal. Tottenham Hotspur also won, coming 1-0 from behind to win 1-3 at the Liberty Stadium. Liverpool drew 2-2 against Bournemouth in an exciting match. Southampton conquered Crystal Palace 3-1 while Hull City beat Middlesbrough 4-2.

With the wins, Arsenal jumped above Manchester United to fifth position while Chelsea and Tottenham further consolidated their positions as first-second. Chelsea now have 72 points  while Tottenham have 65 from 30 games. Liverpool and Manchester City faced setbacks after dropping points but still remain at third and fourth positions respectively.