The Gunners exacted some FA Cup revenge on a flailing Watford side with a 4-0 victory at the Emirates last night.
It was Arsenal’s first win at home after three straight losses, but it was a brilliant result for the London club. The hosts took the lead in the fourth minute through an Alexis Sanchez goal before Alex Iwobi scored in the 38th. Arsenal controlled the match with ease and made it 3-0 shortly after the second half began, with Hector Bellerin finding the net shortly after the restart.
Theo Walcott put the icing on the cake in the 90th minute to make it 4-0. The loss sees Watford languishing in 14th spot on the ladder, while after playing their best game in recent months, the win for Arsenal sees them move to 58 points in third position, but still eight points off the high-flying Foxes.
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Watford cannot score if Deeney or Ighalo do not
Watford rely heavily on Troy Deeney and Odion Ighalo for their goalscoring, and if neither of them can find the net then the Hornets are generally kept well under wraps. Arsenal simply kept possession away from Deeney and this nullified a lot of the visiting side’s chances. They have not won a Premier League game since February, and Quique Flores will be desperately seeking answers to their goal scoring woes.
Wenger and Arsenal still believe they can win the title
Prior to the match, Wenger stated that he believed if they won all of their remaining matches then they still have a shot of capturing the title for the first time since 2004. Now, of course mathematically it is possible, however, they would have to rely on both Tottenham and Leicester slipping up in several of their matches, which one would think highly unlikely. Once again it seems as though Arsenal have left their run to the top a little late.
FA Cup magic needed
Watford have won just two out of their last 14 matches, Crystal Palace have won none. Both teams have performed poorly in the late end of the Premier League, and both teams will be hoping the FA Cup semi-final will be different. Some football magic is definitely needed to make this game bearable as both sides look to ease their top-flight woes.
Alex Iwobi was magnificent
The Arsenal academy graduate looked fantastic all match and also scored in the 38th minute, he was involved in everything and constantly threatened, combining well with Danny Welbeck for some dangerous movement down the left-hand side. The youngster looks promising for Arsenal and Arsene Wenger will be very pleased with his performance.
First Time For Everything
It was the first time that Watford had conceded four goals all season, which is pretty good statistically. The team have a well formed defensive structure usually, yet they tend to struggle against the bigger teams for pace and skill, especially in the midfield. To take 32 matches to concede 4 goals for a mid-table team is admirable considering the deadly weapons possessed by the title contenders.
Watford Should Be Safe
Thanks to Aston Villa and Newcastle’s horrid runs this season, and with Sunderland and Norwich fighting it out at the bottom of the ladder, Watford should be safe in top-flight football thanks to their excellent first-half season, and we should expect them to stay in the Premier League for 2016-17. The Hornets also play Aston Villa, Norwich and Sunderland in the last four games of this campaign, as well as travelling to face Liverpool. These matches probably will not make too much difference to their final standing, but if they do not see positive results then there will be questions asked about the team’s desire to stay in the top-flight.
The Hornets next Everton at home, which will prove a hard task before taking on West Brom away. The fixtures for the remaining matches of the season should help Watford stay up in the Premier League, and with Villa and Newcastle being abysmal it shouldn’t be long before they are confirmed safe.
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