Mikel Arteta, the Spanish manager of Arsenal, believes his team reaped the rewards of their immense effort against West Ham, commenting on the decision to disallow a late equalizer from the hosts.
Arsenal took another step closer to the Premier League title with a hard-fought 1-0 victory over West Ham at the London Stadium on Sunday, in the 36th round of the competition.
The only goal of the match came from Leandro Trossard in the 83rd minute, with a powerful strike from inside the box after a brilliant pass from substitute Martin Ødegaard.
Drama unfolded in the final minutes, specifically at 90+5, when Callum Wilson scored what appeared to be an equalizer for West Ham from a corner kick. However, the referee disallowed the goal after a VAR review, citing a foul on Arsenal goalkeeper David Raya.
“In the end, this is the beauty of the Premier League. Amid all that chaos, with the goalkeeper inside the box, they managed to score,” Arteta told the BBC after the match.
“I saw the incident live and thought it would be a foul. But I understand, and I realized today that referees must be in that situation, make that decision, and change the course of a team. What a responsibility! What a decisive decision!”
He added: “I think we started the game excellently. We created three clear chances but couldn’t score, and then Ben White got injured, forcing us to make changes.”
“The situation wasn’t ideal, and we had to change Calafiori at halftime. But I think we showed great courage in making those changes and the players who came in stepped up.”
“I believe we reaped the rewards of our hard work. Martin did a fantastic job to save the victory for us, along with David Raya’s save.”
Five minutes before Arsenal’s goal, Raya made a stunning save to deny West Ham’s Matheus Fernandes from close range.
Arteta continued: “The referee and VAR showed great courage today to stop the play and analyze it, giving the referee the chance to make the decision.”
He clarified: “I think no one will dispute that it was a clear foul, because David was almost touching the ball, and they didn’t allow him to, taking advantage to score.”
On Raya’s incredible save, he said: “If you want a chance to win big titles, you need moments, actions, and individuals who create those magical moments. David, like Martin Ødegaard, created a game-winning moment.”
Regarding Ben White’s injury, Arteta concluded: “It doesn’t look good at all. He will need to undergo tests.”
