Arsenal get their Premier League title challenge back under way on Boxing Day as they host West Ham United at the Emirates.
The Gunners went into the World Cup break five points clear of champions Manchester City after their best league start in years.
The pause for Qatar 2022 and injury to key striker Gabriel Jesus may have dented their momentum, but manager, Mikel Arteta, will be keen to rekindle their fine form ahead of a busy January as he faces his old mentor, David Moyes.
Here is everything you need to know about Arsenal vs West Ham:
What time is Arsenal vs West Ham?
Arsenal vs West Ham kicks off at 8pm GMT on 26 December (Boxing Day) 2022.
What TV channel is Arsenal vs West Ham on?
All Premier League games on Boxing Day, including Arsenal vs West Ham, will be shown on Amazon Prime Video.
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Yes. You will be able to watch all the matches on the Prime Video app on your phone, tablet, computer, games console or on TV with an Amazon Prime subscription.
Amazon’s coverage is compatible with Smart TVs and Blu-Ray players, and can be accessed on most modern games consoles, as well as with a Fire TV stick and set top boxes from BT TV, TalkTalk TV or Virgin TV.
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An Amazon Prime subscription costs £8.99 per month or £95 for the year, though new customers can sign up to a 30-day free trial.
Arsenal vs West Ham commentators and pundits
Amazon has brought in some of the biggest names in football broadcasting, commentary and punditry, with Gabby Logan, Jon Champion, Ally McCoist, Thierry Henry and Eni Aluko expected to be part of its coverage for Arsenal vs West Ham.
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Team news
Arsenal: Gabriel Jesus (knee) could be out for several months while Reiss Nelson (leg) is sidelined for a few weeks after picking up an injury in a mid-season friendly against Juventus. Emile Smith Rowe (groin) is back in training but a doubt, and William Saliba has only just returned from the World Cup so is unlikely to start. Eddie Nketiah or Gabriel Martinelli are expected to deputise for Jesus up front.
West Ham: Strikers Gianluca Scamacca (ankle) and Michail Antonio (calf) both face a race to be fit for this clash after picking up injuries in a friendly against Fulham. Five West Ham players returned to training from the World Cup last week with Morocco’s Nayef Aguerd the main concern after suffering with injury and illness in Qatar. Moyes has hinted that Jarrod Bowen could start up front.
Analysis: A make-or-break month begins for Arsenal
By Kat Lucas
Arteta has entered make-or-break territory, shortly after his third anniversary in the hot seat. Two years ago, he was on the verge of being sacked, on a run of five losses from seven, and hovering close to the relegation zone before beating Chelsea 3-1 on Boxing Day. Defeat to West Ham this year would not be nearly so catastrophic but would threaten to derail what is likely to be one of their best hopes of ending a 17-year wait for a Premier League title.
Yet with injuries mounting, it comes down to January, and whether Arsenal take the plunge. In a recent column for The Telegraph, Jamie Carragher made the unfavourable comparison with Tottenham’s 2015-16 side under Mauricio Pochettino, who did not use the winter window to strengthen and ultimately saw their title bid collapse.
“Daniel Levy favoured the long-term over the here and now and Spurs consoled themselves with the idea that, even though they lost out to Claudio Ranieri, other title bids would follow,” he wrote. “‘The reality is – as a club – they blew their best chance in decades of being champions.”
The difference was Spurs did not manage to secure their main target, French striker Moussa Dembele as a back-up option, and were left to hope Harry Kane would stay fit. Already, Arsenal do not have that luxury. In addition to Jesus, Emile Smith Rowe is currently recovering from a long-term groin problem, Takehiro Tomiyasu and Albert Sambi Lokonga are coming back from knocks, and now Reiss Nelson has injured his leg in a post-World Cup friendly (who could possibly have foreseen that those games weren’t necessary…)
It is not all gloom. Bukayo Saka swaggered through England’s victories and few of Arsenal’s other representatives actually played enough to return fatigued, Aaron Ramsdale minuteless and Ben White leaving England’s camp early. Martin Odegaard and Oleksandr Zinchenko did not go at all.
But then come the fixtures: West Ham (h), Brighton (a), before Newcastle (h), Tottenham (a), Manchester United (h), all before the end of January. City’s are even worse, with a run of Chelsea and United away and Tottenham at home.
15 February is the showdown between the two contenders that was postponed due to the Queen’s death. Arsenal’s job is to make sure their chance has not already slipped away by then.
Read Kat’s full analysis here
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