Mikel Arteta seems to be feeling the pressure ahead of facing West Ham as the Arsenal boss issues a telling plea to both his players and supporters.
West Ham head to the Emirates to face Arsenal on Saturday for Nuno Espirito Santo’s second game in charge.
A 1-1 draw at Everton got Nuno’s Hammers tenure off to a solid start.
And the vastly improved performance will not be lost on Mikel Arteta and Arsenal’s players and fans.
On paper this looks like a comfortable win for the Gunners against a West Ham side which has been in regression for the best part of two years and currently sit in the bottom two of the fledgling Premier League table.
As Arteta and Arsenal know only too well, though, games against West Ham are not always that straightforward.
West Ham responsible for 50% of Arsenal’s home defeats in last 42 games
Arsenal have battered the Hammers at the London Stadium in the last couple of years, 5-2 last season and 6-0 the season before that.
But West Ham have derailed Arsenal’s title ambitions in each of the last two campaigns.
A 2-2 draw at the London Stadium ended the Gunners’ hopes in the 2022/23 season.
Consecutive defeats to the Hammers at the Emirates in the last two campaigns have dented Arteta’s drive for a first title since 2004.
It is easy to overlook just how good and consistent Arsenal have been under Arteta despite their lack of silverware.
In Arsenal’s last 42 home league matches, they’ve only lost four games and 50 per cent of those have been against West Ham United.
Arsenal look like a different animal this season, a muscly squad capable of competing on the floor and in the air with quality in depth across the pitch and a penchant for goals from crosses and set-plays.
On the flip side West Ham, who were among the top flight’s best set-piece sides under David Moyes, are now on course to be the worst team in Premier League history when it comes to that particular metric.
The Hammers have shipped eight goals from corners in six games – halfway to setting a new record with 32 games to go.
All logic points to a home win.
Arteta running scared of West Ham with plea to players and fans
But West Ham will be hoping for a new manager bounce and to take confidence from their wins in north London over the last two seasons.
There is already so much at stake in this game.
New-look Liverpool are struggling to gel and many believe it is handing Arsenal their best chance of a title triumph yet.
The Irons meanwhile simply have to start putting points on the board if they are to avoid an unthinkable relegation.
And ahead of the game Arteta is running scared of West Ham as the Arsenal boss issues a plea to his players and fans.
The Spaniard is reminding his players what the Hammers have done to their title dreams over the last couple of seasons.
And he is calling on Gunners fans to play their part, saying the supporters need to make it a cauldron to help see off Nuno’s side.
“We learned in the last two seasons – two defeats in the last two years against them here,” Arteta said in his pre-match press conference.
“It’s something we need to put right and tomorrow is another opportunity to do that.
“That’s the difficulty of that, and the game that we’re going to have to play tomorrow as well, with a new manager, and we know Nuno really well, the way he sets his team.
Arteta wants Gunners to show up vs Hammers on and off the pitch
“So we expect a really tough match, as we’re going to demand again three days later, to come back and have the same performance to win the game.
“It’s about generating momentum and there are periods in the season that are capital and the (West Ham) game is a really important one for us.
“That’s why from the beginning we need to generate that the (fans in the) stadium as well and go for it.”
With so much riding on the game already, Arteta and Nuno may be worried about a Premier League announcement for the big clash.
The match kicks off at 3pm, official teams will be announced at 1.45pm.
