Rob Holding describes why Mikel Arteta became annoyed at Arsenal players during their victory over West Ham
Arteta was dissatisfied with one aspect of Arsenal's 2-1 victory over West Ham.
Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta was unhappy with his players at halftime during their 2-1 win over West Ham United on Sunday, according to Rob Holding.
The defender, who was called up at the last minute due to Ben White's hamstring injury, opened the scoring for the Gunners with his first Premier League goal. However, Arsenal conceded on the stroke of half-time, allowing Jarrod Bowen to cushion a touch in the penalty area before shooting past Aaron Ramsdale and into the bottom corner.
Conceding just before halftime enraged Arteta, who had to deliver some harsh truths in the locker room at halftime. "Yeah, we were a little disappointed to concede that just before halftime," Holding said after the game to Arsenal Media. "It would have been nice to go in one-nil, but he yelled at us all and told us off, and we came out and looked more like a team and played how he wanted us to play."
Nonetheless, Arsenal responded well, and Gabriel Magalhaes' second-half goal restored their lead. They then had the maturity to see out another victory, something Holding has been instrumental in recently, albeit from the bench.
It was only his second league start since January, but he's frequently come on late in games to help his team secure a victory. "The fans were pleading for Rob Holding to join, but he was already there!" he laughed. "It's been like that all year, Ben and Gabi have been great all year, and when I've had to come on and try to help us secure the three points, it's been crucial for us, so to play the full 90 and get the three points is even better."
With four games remaining, Arsenal remains in fourth place with 63 points, three points behind Chelsea and two points ahead of north London rivals Tottenham. As a result, it's bound to be an interesting end to the race for Champions League football.
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