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The pre- match message was for Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, but we now know he wasn't the only one listening.
The decision by Mikel Arteta to strip Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang of the captaincy was the main topic of discussion in the build-up to the game against West Ham United. It had the opposite effect, galvanising this young group to produce one of their most complete performances of the season to earn a 2-0 win, climb into the top four and offer an exciting glimpse of what life without him could look like.
Arteta said after the match that they were focused. They wanted to show how strong we are. The performance, attitude and commitment they showed today is exactly what we are.
I expect our players to stick to our values. We will talk about that again. I want to talk about the game.
It won't be for a long time, according to history.
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There was a time when Aubameyang was carrying a team on his shoulders. Arteta's predecessor Unai Emery would almost certainly have been fired earlier than November of this year if it weren't for the prolific front of goal by Aubameyang.
Arteta demoted the 32-year-old on Tuesday due to a lack of "commitment and passion" in addition to certain moments where he has not fulfilled his duties.
There was a lot of commitment and passion on Wednesday. The crowd at the stadium can sometimes be unforgiving, but they responded to the application on show, pressing West Ham relentlessly into mistakes in a breathless first half that ended without a goal.
Gabriel Martinelli, Alexandre Lacazette and Bukayo Saka led from the front when it came to press.
Martinelli's 48th-minute opening goal bore more than a passing resemblance to the one he scored in his pomp, drifting in off the left to collect Lacazette's pass before curling a right-footed shot past Lukasz Fabianski. The way Martinelli opened his body up to finish clinically was one of the hallmarks of Henry.
Martinelli would be very valuable if he could find a replacement for Aubameyang. The 20-year-old made four tackles and scored his seventh goal of the season, making him the most prolific Brazilian in the league's history.
Arteta said that Martinelli was one of his best performances. He is growing. He needs to mature in that sense as well.
He is able to put some gears into his play, instead of doing everything 100 mph, because his understanding of the game is getting much better. The quality he shows at times is top.
The win over West Ham was as impressive as the rest of the season has been.
Arteta's authority would have been in question if the team had not won, and the pressure would have been on the Spaniard to find a way back into the team for the prolific forward. The game felt similar to the one in March when Arteta dropped the Gabon international at the last minute after he reported late for a team meeting and his team responded with an impressive 2-1 win.
An important history lesson can be offered by what came next. Two of the next nine were won by the club, a run that brought renewed scrutiny to the peripheral role of the player.
They face a slate of games before New Year's Day, including a Carabao Cup quarter-final against Sunderland, and then a game against Leeds United. If he is to revive his fortunes in north London, the programme offers the chance to generate further momentum and shift the focus to him to match the focus and diligence around him.
Dan Thomas is joined by Craig Burley, Shaka Hislop and others to debate the biggest storylines. You can stream on the U.S. only.
The game was not safe until the very end. The home side were able to take advantage of the soft penalty decision as they appeared to win the ball from Lacazette with a tackle in the box, although it was notable that West Ham boss David Moyes suggested the defender should have been more decisive in his challenge.
The damage was still profound for the Hammers, despite the fact that the penalty miss was the third in a row for the Gunners.
Emile Smith Rowe came on in the 90th minute and scored his second goal of the game three minutes later, wrongfooting Fabianski with a left-footed shot. It was the tenth league goal that the team had scored by a player under the age of 21.
The importance of this game was overshadowed by the furore over Aubameyang and the fact that the Hammers are in fine form under David Moyes. After winning a player's vote, the captain was made. Arteta's boldest decision in his managerial career would have been interpreted as a sign of discontent if his performance had been poor.
One of their best displays of the season was delivered. They responded to Arteta's call. Time will tell if that continues or not.
