Arsenal 2-0 Watford match review

Arsenal defeat Watford despite lacklustre performance as they claim a flattering 2-0 victory

An own goal from Craig Cathcart and a slick finish from Mesut Ozil gave Arsenal an unconvincing seventh straight victory for Unai Emery.

Watford's confidence has not been shaken since their perfect start to the campaign was ended by a draw and a defeat from their last two games, and they pressed Arsenal from the off at the Emirates. But they could have been behind within five minutes, when Christian Kabasele's aggressive challenge in the box caught Alexandre Lacazette. The forward tried to stay upright but stumbled over a second later - and it was enough for referee Anthony Taylor to wave for a goal kick, despite it being evident there was contact. Watford failed to to take advantage, with midfielder Will Hughes failing to make Arsenal pay when he planted a volley wide from the edge of the box minutes later, when he should have found the target given the time he had to shoot.

An end to end game was to follow, yet Arsenal spent much of the game lacking imagination, and their best chance of the half came from a Watford mistake when Lacazette caught Craig Cathcart in possession, before racing through and missing the far corner with a poor miss. Berndt Leno came on just before half-time, as Petr Cech was forced off with a hamstring injury just before half-time. Leno impressed once coming on, making an excellent save from a Troy Deeney toe poke, tipping the ball wide of the post after a ball came in from a free kick. He was soon called into action again, showing excellent decisiveness when he came out to save from Andre Gray, narrowing down his angle and making a great block to prevent Watford from taking the lead.

Watford then went on to have there best chance of the game, with Isaac Success racing through on goal, only to put the ball agonisingly wide of the far post, chipping the ball narrowly past Leno. Watford were soon to pay for those missed chances, as Alex Iwobi's cross struck Cathcart's leg and bounced into his own goal. Lacazette's pressure on Cathcart saw him turn the cross beyond Ben Foster and into his own net. Once Arsenal went ahead, they soon scored another. Lacazette turned provider to tee up Ozil, who nicely placed the ball into the back of the net and secured victory for Arsenal.

What did the game teach us?

Despite Arsenal being unconvincing, they have now won 7 straight games in all competitions, there best run since 2015. The gunners may not have performed well for periods of the game, but they’re now showing a lot more mental strength than they did under Arsene Wenger. They would have lost games like this last year. Emery is slowly but steadily installing more and more resilience into this team, and its starting to reap rewards. Arsenal are now picking up more wins, and yes, the performances are not quite at the level necessary, but they’re picking up points which is all the fans can ask for at the moment. Mental strength and being able to pick up results on a bad day are something that Arsenal haven’t been associated with for years, so progress is already becoming evident. At times they’re still looking shaky defensively, but its important that the fans give Emery more time to sort it out, as he’s already improving the team after only a handful of games

Who impressed?

The usual stars in this Arsenal team were perhaps lacklustre today, but other players stepped up instead. Rob Holding was excellent in defence, making crucial block to deny Troy Deeney after he turned Mustafi and was left with only Leno to beat. As for the subs, Danny Welbeck and Alex Iwobi massively impressed once coming off the bench. It was these two who changed the game and tipped it into Arsenal’s favour. This just goes to show the effect Unai Emery is having on Arsenal. These players were nothing but dead wood to most people who take an interest in Arsenal, yet they have looked rejuvenated under Emery. Both have been impressive this season, and it is great to see these players start to improve and gain confidence. Both look to play an important role in shaping Arsenal’s season. 

Player Ratings: 
Cech 6, Bellerin 5, Mustafi 5, Holding 8, Monreal 6, Torreira 6, Xhaka 4, Ozil 7, Ramsey 6, Aubameyang 5, Lacazette 6 
Leno 7, Iwobi 7, Welbeck 7 

Foster 7, Navarro 6, Cathcart 6, Kabasele 7, Holebas 7, Hughes 6, Capoue 6, Doucoure 7, Pereyra 7, Deeney 7, Gray 6

Success 7 Femenia N/A