Tune in at 2:45 PM ET as Arsenal takes on West Ham. Rob Sturney will be liveblogging for your enjoyment.
I'm Rob Sturney here with The Score's continuing coverage of the EPL. Today we have a Wednesday, as we will next week as well. Arsenal is looking up at five teams above them in the standings and are having a devil of a time staying consistent. West Ham, the visitors, are in 12th place and come to North London to try to sneak points out of the Gunners
Sam Allardyce can't call on Chamakh today as he's on loan from Arsenal. McCartney misses through a knee injury, as does Carroll, who is approaching his return. Maiga is at the African Cup of Nations and Collins misses out with a hamstring injury.
Wenger misses Coquelin, who picked up a hamstring injury in the loss to Chelsea, Fabianski, Arteta with a bum calf, Rosicky's calf takes him out too and Gervinho is ripping it up in South Africa.
Lineups: Arsenal: Szczesny, Mertesacker, Vermaelen, Sagna, Gibbs; Wilshire, Ramsey; Podolski, Cazorla, Walcott, Giroud
West Ham: Jaaskelainen, Demel, Tomkins, Reid, O'Brien; Noble; Collison, Vaz Te, Nolan, Taylor; Carlton Cole.
Diaby picked up whatever it was Podolski and Oxlade-Chamberlain had on the weekend, so he's replaced by Ramsey. Podolski gets a start, but Ox is on the bench.
Many changes on Allardyce's side. Collison shuttles Reid out of the defense and into the midfield where he joins Vaz Te and Noble. No starts for Joe Cole and Diame, which are surprises
I think the Gunners are going to get their groove back today, but it won't be an easy one.
Diame joins Alou Diarra on the bench, a player who called his move to West Ham "a waste of time."
West Ham have only 8 points out of their last 10 games. They are third in the league in yellow and red cards, mind you. In their last three EPL game they've beaten Norwich, lost to Sunderland and drawn with QPR.
I should have known my original lineups came from a confused source - it had Walcott in the defense. Reid IS in the defense and Collison in the midfield.
You bet, lineups are just down a ways.
Walcott has been in the middle of most of Arsenal's scoring of late; he leads the team with 9 league goals. Captain Nolan has five for the Irons, and Noble, who looks to be in the holding role of a 4-1-4-1, has four goals.
Yes, several perplexed people running about unsure of themselves = goals.
Arsenal sports the traditional red and white kits. West Ham is light on the claret and heavy on the light blue today. Szczesny is in all green and Jaaskelainen is clad in a gold jersey, black shorts.
Let's hope this game has some vigour to it and some goals.
Arsenal will be attacking from left to right in the first half. Left to right. West Ham will kick us off.
1 min: Arsenal flows forward with promise as soon as they capture the ball, but an errant pass into the box deflated that balloon.
2 min: Podolski can't quite chase down Gibbs' heavy ball but it rolls out the byline. Soon after the goal kick, the Gunners are back on the hunt.
3 min: Ramsey fouls Noble with a brusque tackle.
3 min: The Hammers take the free kick in their end. Demel finds occasion to cross off of Ramsey for a corner kick, far flag.
4 min: Taylor can't meet Tomkins' head and Sagna throws in for the red and whites.
5 min: Slow build up from the defensive four. Walcott takes Ramsey's through ball to the right of the West Ham box, but the cut back is weak.
5 min: Noble gets a head of steam going, but Sagna ties him up and the Gunners take the ball long enough to lose it again.
6 min: Plenty of battles in the middle of the par, so the Irons go outside left. No purchase out there either.
7 min: Collison collides with Wilshire and the young Englishman stays down for a bit.
8 min: Wilshire leaves the field of play to gather himself, but he'll carry on.
8 min: Sagna and Walcott cause all sorts of mayhem and eventually win a corner from the near flag.
9 min: Wilshire, back in the pink, swings in a corner kick that is clouted clear by the Hammers. Now West Ham gets busy on the far touchline.
10 min: West Ham's foray is initially hooked away, but they stay on it and Vaz Te slips a header wide.
11 min: Mertesacker slides a ball to the other team and then Arsenal must foul to stop West Ham from countering quickly. The free kick produced a moment to threat but Mertesacker hacks it out of his box.
12 min: Giroud cuts it back from the left side of the box for Podolski, but it's behind the German. Finally, Cazorla cracks one over the net. A promising sequence for the Gunners.
