‘Arsenal needs to grow up’- Fans react as Arsenal’s title push suffers setback after Gunners were held to 2-2 draw by West Ham

Arsenal’s title push suffered a slight setback on Sunday as the Gunners were held to a 2-2 draw by bottom-half outfit West Ham at the London Stadium.

The table-topping Gunners got off to an ideal start as goals from Gabriel Jesus and skipper Martin Odegaard put them two to the good with just 10 minutes played. Arsenal looked good value for their lead as they dominated the ball and created the best chances while their hosts struggled to stay in the game.

West Ham were handed a lifeline just after the half-hour mark when Gabriel fouled Lucas Paqueta in the box to give away a penalty. Said Benrahma converted from the spot to halve the deficit going into half time.

Shortly after the restart, the Gunners were awarded a spot-kick of their own when Michail Antonio was adjudged to have handled in the box. However, Bukayo Saka failed to extend his side’s advantage as he put his effort wide of the post. This proved to be extremely costly as the Hammers got back on level terms just two minutes later, with Jarrod Bowen finishing past Aaron Ramsdale in the Arsenal goal.

West Ham actually went close to taking the lead as Antonio hit the bar in the final 10 minutes, but 2-2 was how the game eventually finished. This was the second successive 2-2 draw for Mikel Arteta’s Arsenal, who also got the same result against Liverpool at Anfield last week. While they would be ruing dropping points at this crucial part of the season, with Manchester City breathing down their neck, the fact that they gave up two-goal leads on both occasions would be extremely galling for the Gunners.

With this draw, Arsenal are now four points ahead of second-placed Manchester City, having played a game more than Pep Guardiola’s men. Arsenal will be hoping to get key players back in the starting eleven before long, as William Saliba has sat out the last couple of games and Oleksandr Zinchenko did not feature in the clash with West Ham.

The Gunners have the opportunity to extend their lead atop the Premier League table to seven points if they beat Southampton next week, with City in FA Cup action, before an absolutely vital table-topping clash against the defending champions at the Etihad the week after.

Here’s a look at how fans reacted after the Arsenal game against West Ham:

https://twitter.com/dopequdus/status/1647874232406163456

This annoys me so much and I'm not even an Arsenal fan…

It would not be a "terrible season" or a "failure" if Arsenal finish 2nd. They finished 5th last year.

People are confusing disappointment with failure. They are very, very different things.

— Dougie Critchley (@DougieCritchley) April 16, 2023

Arsenal needs to grow up
U need the consistency and relentless to win the league…trying isn't enough
I hope u get victory at eithad on the 26th cos I don't see any victory for u guys but vice versa

— MAMA’S BOI (@jmoonlit0) April 17, 2023

https://twitter.com/Deb_236/status/1647879696300875776

Newcastle loss.
Spurs loss.
Chelsea loss.
Arsenal draw.
UNITED WIN.

Beautiful weekend. pic.twitter.com/YjN1BbOQ7V

— Trey (@UTDTrey) April 16, 2023

Hate making excuses for the Arsenal, but the referees don’t help themselves.

Declan Rices hand MOVES TOWARDS THE BALL…. Penalty should have been disallowed ❌

Gabriel comes out the challenge knowing he has made a mistake and yet Paquetas hands go up before contact ready to… pic.twitter.com/x78FV14ZwC

— Akash (@Ak0320p) April 17, 2023

Mancity are rolling like the bright students in primary school who would have 350 marks na bado hujamwekea Maths, his favourite subject. Arsenal nao wako na 300 marks in all subjects na science aliekewa 88 badala ya 08 by mistake

— Supu ya Mutura (@I_amShiti) April 16, 2023

Michael Owen on Arsenal bounce back:

"Southampton aren't doing that well, bottom of the league. And you are looking to bounce back so absolutely back on track with Southampton before the big one.

If Arsenal avoids (vs City) defeat then it swings to their favor again." [PL]

— AfcVIP⁴⁹ (@VipArsenal) April 17, 2023

https://twitter.com/ItsMainaKageni/status/1647681975761899520

“Arsenal can’t handle pressure” is bullshit. We’re going up 2-0 for fun in APRIL with City applying pressure. Top mentality. Our problem is we can’t *sustain* pressure without Saliba/Zinchenko. No compactness, distances wider, defensive line deeper…our buildup is our identity.

— Mo (@MoArsenal86) April 17, 2023

You must be sick if you are celebrating Arsenals downfall…

— ALLAN_NYASH (@AllanNyash) April 16, 2023