Mikel Arteta praises two Arsenal stars and ‘congratulates’ the referee after West Ham win

Mikel Arteta hailed two Arsenal players and referee Chris Kavanagh after the dramatic Premier League win over West Ham.

The Gunners moved a step closer to becoming Premier League championswith a crucial 1-0 victory at the London Stadium on Sunday.

Leandro Trossard’s deflected strike gave Arsenal a late lead after David Raya produced a massive save to deny Mateus Fernandes.

There was more late drama in east London, however, as West Ham thought they had scored a late equaliser when Callum Wilson turned home from a corner.

But after a lengthy VAR check the goal was disallowed for a foul on Raya and Arsenal went on to hold on and clinch a crucial win which leaves them five points clear of second-placed Manchester City.

Arteta reserved special praise for Raya and Martin Odegaard after the victory, with Arsenal’s captain providing the assist for Trossard’s winner after coming on as a second-half subsitute.

The Gunners boss also ‘congratulated’ referee Kavanagh and the VAR officials for showing the ‘courage’ to disallow West Ham’s late goal.

‘I think we started the game so well,’ Arteta said. ‘We created three big chances but didn’t manage to score the goal, then Ben White’s injury comes in and we have to adjust that.

‘It doesn’t really work out and half-time we have to change Calafiori as well, another change, so it’s not ideal. But I think we showed a lot of courage with the changes and the persons that bring.

‘I think we got rewarded because Martin made an incredible action to win us the game, apart from David’s save in the 70th minute.

‘If you want the chance to major trophies, you need moments and actions and the individuals creating those magic moments and David certainly – like Martin Odegaard – created a moment to win us the game.’

On the VAR check which led to West Ham’s disallowed goal, Arteta added: ‘In the end, this is the beauty of the Premier League.

‘In all this chaos and with the keeper in your box, they managed to score. The referee and the VAR today had a lot of courage to stop and analyse the action and give the opportunity to the referee to make the call.

‘I think nobody would disagree that it is a clear foul because David has the ball almost in his hands and they don’t allow him to do that and they take advantage to score the goal.

‘My instinct, because I watched it live, is that it was going to be a foul. But I understand and today I realised for the referees to be in that position and make that call and change the course of one the two teams, what a responsibility. What a big call.

‘When I had to be critical, I have been. Today I have to congratulate them [referees]. A lot of courage and bravery to stand out and give the opportunity to the referee to have a look at the action.’

While Arsenal boosted their title hopes, West Ham sunk closer to relegation following a heartbreaking defeat.

Hammers boss Nuno Espirito Santo said he felt a mixture of ‘frustration and sadness’ after the game and criticised the ‘lack of consistency’ in refereeing decisions.

‘We knew how crucial it was,’ he said. ‘Frustration, this is what we are feeling now, but mostly sadness.

‘I think it is a lack of consistency that has been happening in recent seasons. The referees are allowing a lot of blocking and grappling almost and sometimes they judge it differently.

‘This is the frustration now of not understanding what is a foul and what is not a foul.’

West Ham remain 18th in the Premier League, one point below Arsenal’s north London rivals Tottenham with just two games remaining.

The Hammers visit St James’ Park to face Newcastle United next weekend while Arsenal face Burnley at home on Monday week.

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