After a breathtaking 90 minutes at Upton Park, Arsene Wenger was of the opinion that Andy Caroll exposed Arsenal’s weakness in the air.
West Ham target-man Andy Carroll bagged a quick first half brace to put West Ham on level terms, after two goals from Mesut Ozil and Alexis Sanchez.
Carroll’s first came from Aaron Cresswell’s cross, which was powered into goal. His second goal came from an acrobatic volley after cushioning the ball with his chest.
The second half saw Carroll converting a pinpoint Mikhail Antonio cross to complete his deserved hat-trick. Arsenal now find themselves 13 points behind league leaders Leicester City.
“First of all because he is good in the air. We lost a bit of urgency when we were 2-0 up after 43 minutes. We had a good game today but a bad result,” said Wenger, speaking to the media.
Wenger also questioned whether Andy Carroll deserved to be on the pitch, after the latter evaded a red card for a crunching challenge on Frenchman Laurent Koscielny.
“Yes of course, he was lucky to finish the game,” insisted Wenger. “But that doesn’t mean we have to concede goals from headers, we have to look at ourselves and cannot influence the decisions of the referee.”
Wenger has been criticized about his goalkeeper selections of late, and the early kickoff on Saturday saw Colombian international David Ospina start. When he was questioned about his decision to go with Ospina, Wenger replied, “He has had some outstanding performances. With Petr Cech or David Ospina, we have exactly the same problem in the air. We didn’t concede in the last two games. Since the beginning of the season, we have had exactly the same problem, no matter who plays.”
West Ham manager Slaven Bilic admitted that the draw was a ‘blow’ to his team’s push for a European spot, but sounded positive, despite points dropped.
“It’s a blow. I am so proud of my team to come back like that before half-time and then to be better than them in the second half.
“To be two down against a team that has so much pace, it can be three in no time. Then in the second half to be better than them, and at 3-2 we had chances to be 4-2. I’m proud of everything.”
It would not be wrong to look at this match as a a depiction of Arsenal’s season – extremely fluid at times, passing that leaves one at the edge of the seat, flair and chaotic defending. Realistically speaking, Arsenal’s challenge for the title is all but over. They will, however, want to secure all of the 18 points available in order to finish at least second or third. Tricky fixtures against West Brom at home and Manchester City away might prove to be their ultimate deterrent.
