Arsenal vs. West Ham: Score and Reaction from 2015 Premier League Match

Petr Cech's Premier League debut with Arsenal couldn't have gone any worse. West Ham manager Slaven Bilic's debut couldn't have gone any better.

The star 'keeper and only major summer signing for the Gunners was poor Sunday, to say the least, as his blunders played a part in both of West Ham's goals as Arsenal were shockingly upset to start the season, losing 2-0. 

Cheikhou Kouyate's first-half header and a second-half Mauro Zarate strike were the difference for West Ham.

Despite outplaying West Ham in just about every statistical measure—Arsenal held 62 percent of possession and outshot West Ham, 22-8 (6-4 on goal)—the Gunners made the game's crucial errors and couldn't crack their opponent's resolute defense.

"I think our performance was not convincing," Arsene Wenger said after the game, per ITV Football on Twitter. "We were punished. On top of that, we gave two very cheap goals away."

"I can't see many convincing individual performances today," he added. AudioBoom provided additional comments:

It wasn't exactly a championship-worthy performance by the Gunners, as Barry Glendenning of Football Weekly noted:

It was everything the Hammers could have asked for and more in their season debut, however.

"It was a big win for us, not only because we got three points, not only because we won, but because we beat a team that is one of the title contenders this year and had played really well this preseason," Bilic said after the match on NBCSN's broadcast. "Not only that, but it was a London derby. That makes it a bit more special."

Very much against the run of play, West Ham struck first in the 43rd minute. Dimitri Payet swung a free-kick into the box, and Kouyate managed to sneak behind the Arsenal defence and beat the onrushing Cech to the ball, heading into the open net to give West Ham the lead.

Julian Finney/Getty Images

There were mixed reactions as to which player deserved blame for the goal. Soccer writer Miguel Delaney blamed Arsenal's defence:

Jason Burt of the Telegraph held Cech responsible:

Cech was absolutely responsible for West Ham's second goal, however. 

After Arsenal failed to clear the ball in the 57th minute, Zarate won it back on the outside of the box and quickly spun toward the goal, whipping a shot at the near post. Inexplicably, Cech seemed to gamble on the ball going to the far post and was caught completely out of position, unable to save a shot he should have stopped. 

It was the sort of error that had folks like Roger Bennett of Men In Blazers joking that perhaps Cech was still aiding his former club, Chelsea, although now in a more clandestine manner:

Max Bretos of ESPN wasn't willing to only blame Cech for the goal, however:

For Arsenal, the disappointment of the league-opening loss to an opponent they should beat was compounded by the disappointing play of their star signing this season. The loss will certainly have supporters crying for another signing with even more fervor, as the team still appears to be an elite forward away from competing for the league title. 

There will be a lot of questions to answer before the Gunners next face Crystal Palace. Right-back Hector Bellerin, who was held out of Sunday's match with a muscle injury, is expected to return for that contest, however. Alexis Sanchez, who came off the bench against West Ham, should be fit enough to start as well.

For all of Arsenal's angst on the day, West Ham couldn't have asked for a better start to the campaign, and they'll head into their match against Leicester City riding a wave of confidence. The talk after the match will surround Cech and Arsenal, but West Ham were deserved winners and will not be an easy matchup for any Premier League club this season.