Arsene Wenger: Players were ‘naïve’

West Ham 3 Arsenal 3: Arsene Wenger called his players naïve for the way they defended against West Ham’s hat-trick hero Andy Carroll, but maybe the Arsenal manager will also be questioning his own approach to the last London derby to be played at Upton Park.

Though Arsenal’s genuine title hopes disappeared weeks if not months ago, Wenger was still talking their chances up going into this match so it was a must-win fixture.

So, it was a surprise when Wenger dispensed with his only summer signing, goalkeeper Petr Cech, and also left giant German central defender Per Mertesacker on the bench in the knowledge Carroll is just the sort of player his teams often struggle against.