West Ham 1 Arsenal 3 - Walcott and Podolski make the difference

Last updated : 26 December 2013 By Kevin DeRaffele

C:WindowsTempphpF9DF.tmpThe first half saw both teams have a couple chances.  The pace of Theo Walcott up and the down the right hand side created a few chances for the Gunners throughout the first half but lead to nothing.

It wasn’t until 47 seconds into the 2nd half where the match had its first breakthrough. West Ham’s Kevin Nolan ripped a shot from the left hand side of the box and was saved by Szczesny but landed at the feet of West Ham’s forward, Carlton Cole, who took full advantage and put it in. It was the breakthrough Sam Allardyce’s team needed.

In the 65th minute, Aaron Ramsey was replaced by Lukas Podolski due to an injury. It seemed as though Ramsey tore his quadricep, when he gestured toward the sidelines.

In the 67th minute, Cazorla weaved his way into a crowded West Ham box and laid the ball off to Theo Walcott. Walcott faked one way and took a step toward the middle of the box and took a left-footed shot which squeezed past a diving Adrián. It was 1-1, with 20 minutes to go.

It didn’t take long for Podolski to get involved. In the 70th minute, he found space of the left hand side after some nice buildup and put in a cross across the face of goal which took a slight deflection off of a West Ham defender straight into the path of a leaping Walcott who calmly headed it into the back of net to put the Gunners up 2-1. It was his second goal of the match, his 44th career Premier League goal.

Once again, 8 minutes later, Podolski found himself involved in another Arsenal goal. This time he got on the score sheet.  The ball was played from the right hand side into Giroud who was working hard in the box.  He got a touch and played it back to an open Podolski who shot a one-timer into the bottom left hand corner. His first goal since returning from an injury he suffered in August.  It looked as though that would be the end of the match.

The match finished 3-1 at Upton Park and for now, the Gunners have retained the lead at the top of the Premier League table. Manager Arsene Wenger will have to look carefully at his squad now as big games against Newcastle away, Cardiff home, and Tottenham home (FA Cup) lurk.