West Ham vs. Arsenal: Score, Reaction from 2016 Premier League Match

Andy Carroll scored a nine-minute hat-trick as West Ham United came from 2-0 down to earn a point in an enthralling 3-3 draw against Arsenal at the Boleyn Ground on Saturday.

Mesut Ozil and Alexis Sanchez got the ball rolling for the Gunners with two well-taken first-half strikes before a brace from Carroll just before the break brought the sides level.

Carroll then notched his third of the afternoon after 52 minutes to put the Hammers in front for the first time. A 70th-minute Laurent Koscielny strike rescued a draw for the Gunners.

Julian Finney/Getty Images

The result left Arsenal in third, 10 points adrift of Premier League table-toppers Leicester City, while West Ham’s dream of a top-four place lives on.

In an entertaining, end-to-end first half, it was the hosts who started brightest, with Dimitri Payet and Manuel Lanzini causing endless problems for the Arsenal rearguard.

And it wasn’t long before the pressure told, as Lanzini had the ball in the back of David Ospina’s net on 12 minutes.

The 23-year-old was the first to react to a scuffed acrobatic effort from Carroll, but the linesman’s flag went straight up as he nodded the ball home.

However, as beIN Sports revealed, Hector Bellerin was playing Lanzini onside, and the goal should have stood:

A matter of minutes later, Arsenal took the lead against the run of play through Ozil, who latched onto a pinpoint pass from Alex Iwobi to slot past Adrian.

It was a stunning finish from the German, but the Hammers faithful were feeling hard done by.

Broadcaster Ian Abrahams was one of many frustrated supporters:

Arsenal were having a lot of joy against West Ham’s three centre-backs, with gaps between those defenders and the wing-backs gifting the Gunners plenty of space.

And it was no surprise to see Arsenal exploit that freedom to take a 2-0 lead.

Iwobi once again played the architect role, as his lofted ball found Sanchez, who slotted it home beautifully, per Premier League:

But Arsene Wenger’s men couldn’t see out the first half 2-0 to the good, as just one minute before the break, Carroll notched his first of the match to reduce the arrears.

Aaron Cresswell’s superb cross was met brilliantly by the striker at the back post, and his header left Ospina rooted to the spot.

And deep into first-half injury time, the Hammers found themselves level through that man Carroll again.

After seeing an initial shot blocked by Koscielny, Carroll acrobatically drilled the ball home with the help of a slight deflection. West Ham’s official Twitter account couldn’t contain its excitement:

Upton Park was rocking as the players walked in for half-time, and it got a little bit louder when Carroll completed his hat-trick just seven minutes after the restart.

Fantastic work from Michail Antonio freed up space for a cross, and the Englishman laid it on a plate for his compatriot to power home at the far post.

Former Hammer Don Hutchison commented on Carroll’s brilliance in the air:

The hat-trick took just nine minutes to complete, and it was the frontman’s first three-goal haul since way back in 2010, according to WhoScored.com:

With the threat of Arsenal’s season being all but over looming large, Wenger decided to adopt a more attacking policy, and it paid off after 70 minutes as Koscielny fired the Gunners level.

After a bit of confusion in the West Ham box, the ball fell to the Frenchman, who cooly side-footed it into the top corner of Adrian’s net, as beIN Sports revealed:

Arsenal threw everything they possibly could at the West Ham defence thereafter. Wenger sent on Olivier Giroud and Theo Walcott to try to find a winner, but the Hammers back line held firm.

In fact, Slaven Bilic’s side could easily have won it themselves after launching several dangerous counter-attacks, but they couldn’t make the breakthrough.

The 3-3 scoreline tells you all you need to know about the match. Saturday’s game was a London derby that truly lived up to the hype, with free-flowing attacking football aplenty.

Post-Match Reaction

A London derby wouldn't be complete without some controversy as well, and Wenger provided it during his post-match press conference, per Bleacher Report's Sam Tighe:

Per West Ham's official Twitter account, Bilic said he's starting to get fed up with goals being disallowed:

Arsenal seemingly need a miracle to end their 12-year barren run without a Premier League title, as their defensive frailty has cost them dearly.

The Gunners take on Crystal Palace in their next Premier League game, while the Hammers travel to face champions elect Leicester City.