Before there was a 'Big Six' in the Premier League there was a 'Big Four' – and they made David Moyes' life a misery.
Traditionally, the wealthiest and often the most successful clubs of the Premier League era have been Manchester United, Liverpool, Arsenal and Chelsea, with Manchester City latterly joining the gang, and somewhat tenuously, Tottenham Hotspur.
Moyes, save for his nightmare nine months at Old Trafford in 2013-14, has always found himself on the outside looking in, first at Everton and these days at West Ham. In his time at Goodison Park, he equated competing with the super clubs of English football as like "bringing a knife to a gun fight".
Yet, on Thursday night, his Hammers side were able to cut Arsenal down to size with a memorable 2-0 win thanks to goals from Tomas Soucek and Konstantinos Mavropanos. For Moyes, though, it was much more than that.
It's probably not a stat he will be especially proud of, but it was the first time in his long managerial career that he has won an away match at the home of one of the traditional 'Big Four' – a run stretching back more than 20 years and some 72 games.
His record in these games now reads: Played 73, Lost 51, Drawn 21, Won 1; (seventy) third time's a charm...
"What about 2023 for us as a club? It’s been fantastic," Moyes said afterwards, referring to their success in the Europa Conference League in June. "And thankfully we’ve finished it off in great fashion today."
The victory would have been even sweeter for Moyes – his second over Arsenal in quick succession following a League Cup win at the London Stadium last month – given it came against his former charge Mikel Arteta. The two were close during their spell together as manager and player at Everton, and the Arsenal boss has in the past credited Moyes with teaching him how to build a culture within a dressing room.
Yet with Arteta an emerging force in management, and Moyes seemingly fighting an endless battle with a section of the West Ham support who yearn for a more glamorous figurehead, he will have taken extra pleasure from this result.
“We’ve lost a couple of games conceding five in recent weeks, which I’ve hated. I try not to get my teams to do that, but tonight we’ve defended really well," Moyes added.
“We had two different centre-halves tonight, we lost [Lucas] Paqueta [during the first half], after he picked up an injury in the warm-up.
“So there were lots of things going against us, but I have to say it was a brilliant resolute performance. They did everything together, they worked so hard together and we could have even got another right at the end there from the penalty."
The win over Arsenal also came on the fourth anniversary of Moyes' return to West Ham in 2019. In that time he initially kept them up, then finished sixth and seventh, with a Europa League semi-final followed by the Conference League triumph, West Ham's first major trophy in 43 years. After picking up three points at the Emirates, they finish 2023 sixth in the table and safely through to the last 16 of this season's Europa League.
A welcome boost for Moyes given his contract is up at the end of the season.
"We are getting ready to talk. I don't think any of us are jumping to get it done too quickly," Moyes told Amazon Prime. "We will get it done, I don't see many problems about it."
He added in his post-match press conference: "We originally came to make sure West Ham didn't get relegated, but we've grown and got better.
"We're fine. I get on well with the board. They're thrilled. They're delighted the team are going strong in the Premier League and in Europe."
Arsenal 0-2 West Ham - player ratings
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ARSENAL PLAYER RATINGS: Saved Benrahma’s spot-kick to keep the score at 2-0. Couldn’t have done anything about the two goals. Reuters -
Failed to direct his header on target when he got on the end of Zinchenko’s cross in the 33rd minute. Solid defensively and tried to help out in attack. Getty Images -
Got involved in a mixup with Gabriel Magalhaes, which led to the Hammers’ opener. Looked shaky all through the game. EPA -
Important block to stop Emerson’s cross in the second half. A calm presence in the Gunners defence. AP -
Involved in the mix-up with Zinchenko that led to the Hammers opener. Beaten to the header by Mavropanos for the visitors' second goal. AFP -
Hit a good effort from range just after the restart, but it went just over. Conceded a late penalty with a foul on Emerson after a slip. Not the result he would have wanted against his former club. AFP -
Looked like Arsenal's best chance of creating or scoring a goal. Stung Areola’s palms with a fierce effort late in the game. Getty Images -
Made an absolute mess of a training ground free-kick routine in the 25th minute. Forced Areola into a good save in the 73rd minute. Reuters -
Called Areola into action with a glancing header half an hour into the game. Had the goal-post shaking with a ferocious effort close to the end of the first half. EPA -
Had a good chance to bring the home side level in the 36th minute, but he hit his effort wide. Another disappointing performance from the Brazilian who has struggled to replicate last season's sensational form. AP -
Displayed good vision to pick out Saka behind West Ham's backline with a precise chipped pass in the first half. Got on the end of Trossard’s cross in the 64th minute, but he directed his header straight at Areola. Reuters -
SUBS: (Martinelli 64') Had a good chance from the edge of the penalty area in the 90th minute, but he failed to keep his shot on target. AFP -
(Zinchenko 64') Attempted an overhead kick in the 89th minute but his effort was too weak to trouble Areola. Never stopped running and fighting for every ball. AFP -
(Trossard 79') Hit a weak effort straight into the hands of Areola in the 86th minute. AFP -
WEST HAM PLAYER RATINGS: Made two saves to deny Saka and Trossard in quick succession in the second half. Provided a huge save to deny Odegaard late in the game. Reuters -
Excellent interception to stop Odegaard from playing Saka through on goal with five minutes of the first half left to play. Won a late penalty, which wasn’t converted. Reuters -
Important header to prevent Gabriel Jesus from getting on the end of Saliba’s glancing header towards the back post. Kept Martinelli relatively quiet and also dealt with the threat of Nelson. AP -
Made a crucial last-ditch tackle to disposes Odegaard before he could go through on goal just before halftime. Made several clearances and interceptions in the second half. AFP -
Impeccable at both ends of the pitch for the visitors. Doubled West Ham's lead with a ferocious header that went in off the bar in the 55th minute. AP -
Opened the scoring with a simple finish from close range in the 13th minute. Proved very crucial when dealing with the Gunners’ crosses into the danger area. AFP -
Put in a hardworking display next to Soucek at the base of midfield and was everywhere for the Hammers late in the game. EPA -
Not one of the best nights of Kudus going forward. He didn’t get a chance to test Raya but did his part tracking back. EPA -
Had the visitors’ first chance with a shot from the edge of the box but failed to keep it on target. Created the second with a good corner-kick delivery for Mavropanos to head home. Reuters -
Played a part in the opener but was subbed off later due to injury. West Ham will hope it's not too serious as the Brazilian has been superb this season. AFP -
Earned the controversial assist for Soucek’s goal as VAR couldn't ascertain whether the ball had stayed in or out of play. Had a tough time holding up the ball for his teammates against the likes of Saliba and Gabriel. Reuters -
SUBS: (Paqueta 33') Had a late chance to make it 3-0 from the penalty spot but Raya saved his spot-kick. Limited to mostly defensive contributions after coming on until his late chance from the penalty spot. Getty Images
