Match Review : Watford vs Arsenal
SEARCH AND PRESS ENTER
by Hemant K Menon
Full Time Score:Watford 1 – 3 ArsenalPereyra (57′) Cazorla (9′ (P) ), Sánchez (40′), Özil (45’+1)
Saturday’s game at Vicarage Road was not just about the Özil -Alexis show. But, the stellar midfield pairing that Arsenal employed to effectively dominate the ball and create chances. The extra man in Watford’s midfield couldn’t affect the outcome of the game. Watford for much of the game was chasing the ball around and when they did get it, to break at pace. However, the first line of defence held firm for long periods in the game. Koscielny and Holding did a fantastic job of starving Ighalo and Deeney throughout the game.
Results of a recent poll conducted by ArsenalKerala.com
The popular choice among Arsenal Kerala Supporters, Cazorla – Xhaka, was the combination preferred in the starting XI by Arsene Wenger as well. The duo controlled the pace of the play and with Xhaka sitting deep and hoofing the ball up and above Watford’s congested midfield. Walter Mazzarri had lined up in a 3-5-2 and that made central passing play tepid and at times impossible.
Watford made another mistake, employing a zonal marking system which allowed Özil to receive the ball from out wide, unchallenged during the 9th minute. The assist king didn’t need a further invitation and in the blink of an eye, he crossed it over the Watford backline towards Alexis. Amrabat upended the Chilean and the resulting penalty was coolly slotted through the middle by Santi Cazorla.
The forward runs of Bellerin and Monreal coupled with the Ox and Özil drifting around in front of the defence opened many an opportunity for Xhaka to play a long ball into the Watford Box. Theo had a great chance to open the scoring and found his fierce shot parried by Gomes. The tempo of the game gradually increased and the second Arsenal goal came up 5 minutes before Halftime.
A quick break by Özil and Bellerin who drifted into the box confused the Watford defence allowing Theo to go wide and cross into the box. Alexis and Ox battled each other to reach the ball and the Wily Chilean lobbed the ball over Gomes. As Prodl cleared the ball the band on the referee’s hand vibrated, signalling that it had crossed the goal line . 2-0 !!
The mood darkened at Vicarage Road and it seeped into the players as well. The defence was at fault for the 3rd Arsenal goal. While all eyes were on the “Battle of the 7’s” (Alexis vs Amrabat) , Özil got the jump on Holebas and Alexis promptly delivered a sweet cross into the box for Özil to prod home.
The start of the second half began with a positive start from Watford and a determination to play the game with nothing to loose. Mazzarri realised that the 3 defenders at the back were getting overrun so he changed to a 4-3-3 bringing on new signing and former Juventus forward Roberto Pereyra for Guédioura at half time.
Another new signing , Daryl Janmaat was thrown into the fray for Kabasele by Mazzarri and suddenly Arsenal was on the back foot for the first time in the game. The momentum shift resulted in their consolation goal 11minutes later. Pereyra bundling in a blocked Capoue shot past a helpless Petr Cech. Janmaat’s cross into the box was cleared by Santi into the feet of Capoue to result in the Watford goal.
With the crowd back on their feet and egging the team on to score more, the new substitutions had the desired effect and Cech was called into action to deny Ighalo and then a Holebas screamer. Seeing Cech under a lot of pressure, the boss decided to shake things up at the 70′ mark. A double substitution saw Özil being taken off for Jack Wilshere while the Ox was replaced by ElNeny.
The rejigged Arsenal lineup saw El-Neny and Xhaka at the centre of the park with Wilshere on the left and Cazorla in the middle. The Gunners effectively cushioned the game thereafter keeping the ball and breaking up Watford attacks and saw the game out comfortably. Strangely enough, the Elneny-Xhaka pairing was absent from our polls but today the effectiveness of the duo was proved as a spirited team, on the rebound were completely nullified and starved off the ball.
The boss praised his side’s performance and had a very positive presser after the match. The mood among the faithful is very bright now as the new signings Skhodaran Musthafi and Lucas Perez are expected to join after the International break.
MAN OF THE MATCH :
Alexis Sánchez ( 1 Goal and 2 Assists)
Arsenal Kerala Supporters Club members across the state reveled in Arsenal’s first win of the season. Official match screenings were organized at Malappuram, Thrissur and Kochi and fans had a gala of a time celebrating the occasion.
Let us know your reactions to the game in the comments below.
Come on You Gunners !!!!
Comments (2)
Anirudh
30 Aug 2016That’s a great review for the match…. But just try to explain the starting 11 for the match like
Cech at the goal
Koscielny and holding at the back with bellerin and monreal as full back
Xhaka and cazorla pairing in middle with Ozil at an attacking mid and chamberlain and Walcott as winger
Sanchez was the lone striker
It will be good to read if you include… Other than that everything was fine…
aksceditor
01 Sep 2016Thank you for the suggestion Anirudh, we ‘ll be sure to pass it on to Hemant.
We would also like to remind you that this website welcomes contributions from all Arsenal Kerala members.
Looking forward to reading some great ones from you.
Comments are closed.