West Ham United's Alessandro Diamanti celebrates after scoring his team's second goal, from the penalty spot. Photograph: Sean Dempsey/PA
If the Gunners do not win the Premier League this season then they will look back at matches like this where dropped points and sloppy defending once again costed Arsene Wenger’s men.
Aware that their hosts had not registered a victory since the opening day of the season, the visitors started the game in positive fashion and took the lead in the fifth minute when Hammers goalkeeper Robert Green spilled a innocuous cross and Robin Van Persie tapped home gleefully for his sixth of the season in the 15th minute.
Stunned, West Ham tried to react in vein but soon fell further behind when Arsenal defender William Gallas headed home from a corner in the 23rd minute.
At 2-0 the match looked dead and buried as a contest and the home fans booed off their team as referee Chris Foy blew for half-time.
What happened in the second half however may, at last kick-start the Hammers season.
There were early signs of promise in the second half when, with ten minutes gone manager Gianfranco Zola brought on Alessandro Diamanti in place of the workmanlike Noble, and the Italian's creativity was obvious immediately. He created a good chance for Carlton Cole, only for the England man to blaze over in front of the onlooking Fabio Capello.
Despite that scare Arsenal continued to appear content to sit back and soak up the pressure, but they were made to pay for it in the 74th minute as Cole headed home to make the score 2-1. He reacted well after Gunners goalkeeper Vito Mannone failed to palm away a Diamanti free-kick convincingly.
West Ham then had a strong penalty appeal turned down before referee Chris Foy then pointed to the spot when Alexandre Song tripped Cole. The raucous home fans then held their breath as Diamanti stepped up and duly exploded as the ace buried the kick for 2-2 with eleven minutes to play.
Source:guardian.co.uk
