Three things to take away from West Ham United against Arsenal: David Moyes’s dismissal calls were proven to be incorrect.
On December 28, West Ham defeated Arsenal 2-0 at The Emirates to start their post-Christmas campaign, moving them up to sixth place in the Premier League.
The Hammers seized the lead in a contentious manner when VAR review of Thomas Soucek’s opening goal led the referees to rule there was insufficient evidence to deny the goal.
Here are three things we learned from the victory at The Emirates…
Moyes has earned more respect
Calls for Moyes’ head were rushed and born from frustration. While results haven’t been absolutely perfect all season – they very rarely are. As things stand, West Ham sit in sixth place after 19 games.
The boss has proved plenty of his doubters wrong with the last couple of performances. Consecutive 2-0 wins against Manchester United at the London Stadium and then Arsenal at the Emirates prove Moyes’ style and system, while frustrating at times, gets the best out of this team.
While he may still leave at the end of the season when his contract expires as the Hammers look to move in a new direction, Moyes has earned more respect than he has been shown in East London.
VAR still isn’t fit for purpose
Despite the call eventually going in favour of West Ham, the fact it took three minutes for the officials to realise they couldn’t make a decision and to go with the on-field call highlighted everything that is wrong with VAR.
