Five reasons to watch West Ham United take on Arsenal

500 UP FOR NOBLES!

Should he feature on Monday evening, West Ham United captain Mark Noble will make the 500th senior appearance of his career.

Still just 32, the midfielder has played 481 times for his boyhood club, in addition to 13 and five appearances on loan at Ipswich Town and Hull City respectively.

The last player to reach 500 senior appearances in Claret and Blue was Robert Snodgrass, who did so in a 4-2 home Premier League win over Burnley on 3 November 2018.

The final Premier League game of matchweek 15 sees Arsenal travel to West Ham, hoping to end their run of eight matches without a victory.#PL pic.twitter.com/6dH718tSWG

— SuperSport ???? (@SuperSportTV) December 9, 2019

FREDDIE'S IN CHARGE...FOR NOW!

At time of writing, Arsenal are seeking a new permanent head coach following the departure of Spaniard Unai Emery on 29 November.

While the search goes on, the Gunners have put former Arsenal, West Ham United and Sweden midfielder Freddie Ljungberg as interim charge.

The 42-year-old spent nine seasons in north London as a player before joining the Hammers for a single campaign in 2007.

After coaching Arsenal’s U15s and U23s, Ljungberg assisted Emery for five months before replacing him.

BACK-TO-BACK HOME WINS OVER ARSENAL AT LAST?

West Ham United could make it back-to-back home league wins over Arsenal for the first time in a little over 35 years tonight.

The Hammers, who had beaten Terry Neill’s Gunners 3-1 in the old First Division in December 1983, defeated Don Howe’s side 3-1 at the Boleyn Ground on 27 October 1984, with midfielder Geoff Pike on target in both victories.

After scoring a 1-0 win at London Stadium in January, West Ham could repeat that feat, at last, on Monday evening.

PROLIFIC PIERRE-EMERICK AUBAMEYANG

While Arsenal’s results have not satisfied many Gunners supporters over the past couple of years, striker Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang could surely have done little more to boost his team’s fortunes.

The Gabon international has plundered 53 goals in just 82 appearances – 71 of them starts – for the club he joined from Borussia Dortmund in January 2018.

Now 30, Aubameyang scored ten goals from just 36 shots in his opening 14 Premier League appearances this term.

AN EARLY MERRY CHRISTMAS!

With Liverpool competing in the Fifa Club World Cup in Qatar, West Ham United’s final home game before Christmas, originally scheduled for Saturday 21 December, has been postponed.

And so, 16 days ahead of the big day, the Hammers will host Arsenal.

The last time West Ham fans waited this long for Christmas after a home game was in 1966, when the Hammers beat West Bromwich Albion 3-0 on 3 December, with Harry Redknapp, Brian Dear and Martin Peters getting the goals.

source: www.whufc.com