West Ham United's Mexican midfielder #19 Edson Alvarez (L) vies with Arsenal's German midfielder #29 Kai Havertz (R) during the English League Cup fourth round football match between West Ham United and Arsenal at The London Stadium, in east London, on November 1, 2023. (Photo by HENRY NICHOLLS / AFP) / RESTRICTED TO EDITORIAL USE. No use with unauthorized audio, video, data, fixture lists, club/league logos or 'live' services. Online in-match use limited to 120 images. An additional 40 images may be used in extra time. No video emulation. Social media in-match use limited to 120 images. An additional 40 images may be used in extra time. No use in betting publications, games or single club/league/player publications. / (Photo by HENRY NICHOLLS/AFP via Getty Images)
3 standout players from defeat in Carabao Cup
Reiss Nelson has been our brightest spark so far tonight. pic.twitter.com/BYZcgLUjCn
— Gunners (@Gunnersc0m) November 1, 2023
3. Reiss Nelson
It wasn’t the best day out for the forwards, but I thought Reiss Nelson had a very good game. He clearly has qualities on and off the ball that deserve a chance with Arsenal’s best lineup.
He only failed one pass all game and was involved whenever Arsenal were going forward. He also put in a big defensive shift, often popping up to help his teammates.
In the first half, he had one run down the wing taking the ball from his half almost to the corner flag, accompanied by three West Ham players. It didn’t end up leading to anything but I felt good about the Hale End graduate’s performance.
I was disappointed when I saw him being subbed off, especially to risk Bukayo Saka when it was already 3-0. I do get the feeling that Nelson needs a few games and a couple of goal contributions to really take off.
November 1, 2023</a></p></blockquote>
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<p>Asked to play as a right centre-back, Jakub Kiwior had a very encouraging performance. The defender was aggressive as well as composed. He won four out of four aerial duels and played confidently throughout.</p>
<p>His passing was very good, with a 92% pass success rate. Of course, it seems odd to compliment a defender who conceded three goals, but I thought he was very good.</p>
<p>In the last decade or so, I have seen many Arsenal centre-backs look jittery, uncomfortable, swallowed up by the occasion and with glaring faults. Kiwior didn’t have any of these problems.</p>
<p>He looked good on the ball, fast, physical and he could be very important in the season, especially if William Saliba or Gabriel get injured.</p>
<p><em>Continued on the next slide…</em></p>
<div class="next-slide slider"> <a class="next-slide-btn" style="background: #c01f2f" data-track="shortcode" data-track-action="next-slide-shortcode" href=https://paininthearsenal.com/2023/11/02/3-standout-arsenal-players-defeat-carabao-cup-west-ham/3/"#"> <span class="title">Next:</span> #2 standout performer </a>
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<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">
<p lang="en" dir="ltr">🚨 Alan Brazil: “And Havertz, people say he’s a midfield player, I don’t know what he is right? I don’t know if he’s a striker, if he’s a midfielder player.”</p>
<p>🗣️ “I know he’s struggling, he might be all right internationally, but in the Premier [League] he is struggling. And I… <a href=https://paininthearsenal.com/2023/11/02/3-standout-arsenal-players-defeat-carabao-cup-west-ham/3/"https://t.co/wNYdyJ3qae">pic.twitter.com/wNYdyJ3qae
<p>— afcsphere (@afcsphere) <a href=https://paininthearsenal.com/2023/11/02/3-standout-arsenal-players-defeat-carabao-cup-west-ham/3/"https://twitter.com/afcsphere/status/1719984932989059521?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%22>November 2, 2023</a></p></blockquote>
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<h2>2. Kai Havertz</h2>
<p>Criticising Kai Havertz has been the pastime of many, many people this season for not scoring goals and for being too weak or nonchalant with the ball. Mesut Ozil used to receive that same criticism, even though stats backed up the fact that he would run more than any other player on the pitch.</p>
<p>Havertz looked fired up yesterday, especially in the first half. He was flying into duels and tackles, getting fouled three times and fouling the opposition twice.</p>
<p>At one point in the first half, Havertz won the ball deep in West Ham territory, drew a foul and then rose in the box to glance the header towards goal, which Łukasz Fabiański pushed over for a corner. If that header went in, all the talk around Havertz would be completely different, which goes to show the fine margins in elite football.</p>
<p>His touch indeed let him down but the German continuously found himself in dangerous positions. Obviously, it would be better if Havertz had made better use of the opportunities, but for me, the very encouraging sign is that he is consistently finding pockets of space in dangerous positions.</p>
<p>I really think that Kai Havertz will have a great career in an Arsenal shirt.</p>
<p><em>Continued on the next slide…</em></p>
<div class="next-slide slider"> <a class="next-slide-btn" style="background: #c01f2f" data-track="shortcode" data-track-action="next-slide-shortcode" href=https://paininthearsenal.com/2023/11/02/3-standout-arsenal-players-defeat-carabao-cup-west-ham/3/"#"> <span class="title">Next:</span> #3 standout performer </a>
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<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">
<p lang="en" dir="ltr">Reiss Nelson has been our brightest spark so far tonight. <a href=https://paininthearsenal.com/2023/11/02/3-standout-arsenal-players-defeat-carabao-cup-west-ham/3/"https://t.co/BYZcgLUjCn">pic.twitter.com/BYZcgLUjCn
<p>— Gunners (@Gunnersc0m) <a href=https://paininthearsenal.com/2023/11/02/3-standout-arsenal-players-defeat-carabao-cup-west-ham/3/"https://twitter.com/Gunnersc0m/status/1719808321480270300?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%22>November 1, 2023</a></p></blockquote>
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<h2>3. Reiss Nelson</h2>
<p>It wasn’t the best day out for the forwards, but I thought Reiss Nelson had a very good game. He clearly has qualities on and off the ball that deserve a chance with Arsenal’s best lineup.</p>
<p>He only failed one pass all game and was involved whenever Arsenal were going forward. He also put in a big defensive shift, often popping up to help his teammates.</p>
<p>In the first half, he had one run down the wing taking the ball from his half almost to the corner flag, accompanied by three West Ham players. It didn’t end up leading to anything but I felt good about the Hale End graduate’s performance.</p>
<div class="embed ">
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<p>I was disappointed when I saw him being subbed off, especially to risk Bukayo Saka when it was already 3-0. I do get the feeling that Nelson needs a few games and a couple of goal contributions to really take off.</p><!—pageview_candidate—>">
