West Ham United v Arsenal
Premier League, London Stadium, Sunday 15 April 2023, 2pm BST
West Ham United return to domestic action on Sunday afternoon when we play host to Arsenal for a second straight Premier League London derby.
Leaders Arsenal head to London Stadium having let a two-goal lead slip to draw 2-2 at Liverpool last weekend, while the Hammers' last league outing saw David Moyes' men defeat Fulham 1-0 at Craven Cottage.
Since then the Hammers were held 1-1 by KAA Gent in the first leg of our UEFA Europa Conference League quarter-final, after Danny Ings' opener was cancelled out by Hugo Cuypers' second half goal.
The Gunners enjoy a six-point lead over Manchester City at the head of the table, having taken 73 points from their 30 matches to date. Having only lost three times in the league, Mikel Arteta's side have taken their quest for a first title in 19 years to the business end of the season.
West Ham's task on Sunday is to attempt to dent those ambitions and lift themselves closer to the sanctuary of mid-table.
Tickets...
Tickets for this sold out game are available on the Ticket Exchange, with Season Ticket Holders who cannot attend this fixture relisting their seats for other supporters to buy. Click here to check availability or relist.
Travel...
The London Underground Central and Jubilee lines are set to serve Stratford station as normal on Sunday, as are the Elizabeth line and London Overground services.
Docklands Light Railway services to Stratford via Poplar and Bow Church are running as normal, but there will be no service on the line from Canning Town to Stratford International. Supporters are advised to use Jubilee line services instead.
Greater Anglia services will be running from London Liverpool Street through Stratford, but supporters should note that buses will replace trains between Marks Tey and Ingatestone, and Braintree and Witham.
Southeastern services will run through Ebbsfleet International to Stratford International, but supporters travelling from north Kent should be aware that buses replace trains between Rainham and Rochester.
How to Follow...
Sunday's game will be broadcast live by Sky Sports in the UK, and will be shown across the world by the Premier League's international broadcast partners.
You can listen to commentary in the UK on BBC Radio 5 Live and BBC Radio London 94.9FM and worldwide on whufc.com and our official app.
You can also follow the action via our live blog on whufc.com and our app and across our social media channels. We will also have highlights and exclusive reaction for you after the final whistle.
Official Programme…
West Ham United's 116-page Official Programme for Sunday's Premier League fixture is available to order online now for just £4, plus £1.49 postage and packaging*.
Copies will be sent via first-class post. Full-season subscriptions are also available, including all Premier League, FA Cup and EFL Cup home issues, from just £119, from the Club's official West Ham Programmes shop.
Team News...
West Ham United boss David Moyes was taking a check on his squad on Friday after they returned to training following Thursday's draw in Gent.
One player who will definitely miss out, however, is striker Gianluca Scamacca, who will undergo surgery on his knee issue this weekend.
Otherwise, Łukasz Fabiański is likely to return in goal to take on his former club, while the likes of Kurt Zouma, Michail Antonio and Tomáš Souček will also hope to start after being named among the substitutes in Belgium.
Opposition...
Back in July 2022, you could have got odds of 33/1 on Arsenal winning the Premier League title. Had you put a few quid on, you will be quietly confident of a significant windful come May 2023.
Now, the Gunners are odds-on to lift the trophy for the first time since Arsène Wenger’s Invincibles did so in 2003/04.
There is some irony, of course, in Pep Guardiola training the manager who could pinch Manchester City’s fifth title in six years from his grasp, but Mikel Arteta has moulded Arsenal in his own image rather than that of his former boss. There is skill yes, but plenty of grit too. A bit of Arsene Wenger’s Arsenal maybe. A bit of David Moyes’ Everton even. Some of what he learnt in Manchester sure, but Arsenal, with their own style, are on the up under Arteta.
Some journey it has been then, because few, if any, predicted the Gunners to be here as the 2022/23 title race heats up and into May. Yes, an Erling Haaland-injuced Manchester City are hot on their heels, but Arsenal will feel it’s there’s to lose with eight games to play.
As it stands, only Manchester City have scored more goals, while no side has registered fewer defeats. Arsenal deservedly sit top of the tree in April. And the last time the Gunners achieved that feat? The Invincibles of 2003/04.
But now comes the added pressure of leading the way. Arteta posted the best win percentage of any Arsenal manager as he recorded his 100th league win as boss in March but the task is to continue the momentum. He knows that. The players know that. The fans do too.
And having narrowly missed out on UEFA Champions League qualification in the final game of the 2021/22 season, Arteta will be keen to ensure small margins do not fall on the wrong side of the Gunners this term. A recent come-from-behind win over AFC Bournemouth – thanks to a last-minute winner from homegrown forward Reiss Nelson – showed the rising belief that this season things will be different.
After initial question marks of the direction Arteta was taking Arsenal in, he has hardly put a foot wrong over the past 12 months.
Summer 2022 saw Gabriel Jesus and Oleksandr Zinchenko follow him from Manchester City. Both have been outstanding successes. January 2023 saw Leandro Trossard and Jorginho arrive from Brighton and Chelsea respectively. Both have already proved their worth for a combined initial outlay of around £33million.
Arsenal are not just built for today, either, but for the future, too. Arteta’s squad is the youngest in the Premier League. Bukayo Saka is 21. So is Gabriel Martinelli. Of his first-team squad, only three players are aged 30 or over.
As it stands, though, a season that was supposed to be a further step towards greater things has become a giant leap towards not just a first top-four finish in seven years and, if current form is sustained for another six weeks, a first title in nearly two decades.
Previous Meetings...
West Ham United meet Arsenal in the Premier League for the 54th time on Sunday.
Arsenal have had much the better of the previous 53. The Gunners have won 36 to West Ham’s eight victories, with nine draws.
Sunday's opponents have won six of the last seven Premier League meetings, with West Ham’s last victory coming at London Stadium on 12 January 2019, when Declan Rice’s goal secured a 1-0 win.
The Irons’ best Premier League results against the Gunners were the 2-0 wins achieved at Highbury on 30 April 1994 and at Emirates Stadium on 9 August 2015.
A 7-0 First Division hammering of the north Londoners at the Boleyn Ground on 7 March 1927 represents West Hams biggest-ever competitive win over Arsenal. Alongside Vic Watson’s treble, Joseph Johnson and Jimmy Ruffell also found the net, while the Gunners’ Tom Parker and Bob John compounded their own misery by scoring own goals!
Match Officials...
Referee: David Coote
Assistant Referees: Lee Betts and Timothy Wood
Fourth Official: Stuart Attwell
VAR: John Brooks
Assistant VAR: Sian Massey-Ellis
David Coote is Sunday's match referee.
Affiliated to the Nottinghamshire FA, Coote began refereeing at the age of 16 and worked his way up through the Notts Alliance League, Northern Counties East Football League, the Northern Premier League and the Conference North.
He was promoted to the Football League List of assistant referees in 2006, and again to the referees’ list in 2010. Coote refereed the 2014 League One Play-Off final at Wembley, which saw Rotherham United defeat Leyton Orient.
The official, whose father played cricket for Nottinghamshire, was appointed to the Select Group of Premier League officials in the summer of 2018.
