Arsenal 1 (Smith Rowe 56′) Watford 0 (Kucka red card 89′)
Emile Smith Rowe‘s second half strike ensured Mikel Arteta celebrated his 100th game in charge of Arsenal with victory against a dogged Watford side.
Claudio Ranieri did not make it easy for his counterpart, setting up in a 4-5-1 formation that prioritised keeping things tight at the back rather than trying to score.
The tactic started well, with Arsenal enduring a frustrating first half. They could have scored twice early on, with Bukayo Saka having a goal ruled out for offside before Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang was denied from the penalty spot by the excellent Ben Foster.
Smith Rowe eventually broke the deadlock 10 mintutes into the second half however with a neat finish from the edge of the box after Ben White’s jinking run forward.
Watford felt Moussa Sissoko had been fouled in the build up but can have no complaints in defeat against a side who showed far more ambition and had another Aubameyang strike ruled out for offside.
A third consecutive win moves Arsenal up to fifth in the Premier League table, above old rivals Manchester United, after eight games without defeat.
Watford, who had Juraj Kucka sent off late on, are down in 17th and will be looking nervously over their shoulder as we head into the international break.
Arsenal player ratings
Aaron Ramsdale: Huge let-off with five minutes left as King failed to capitalise on the goalkeeper’s rash foray off his line. Otherwise a quiet afternoon as Watford had just a solitary shot on target. Passed well and solid at set pieces 6
Takehiro Tomiyasu: Kept Dennis quiet but tougher time against Sarr once the Watford pair switched wings, lost concentration from smart Watford corner routine and not polished in possession 6
Nuno Tavares: Good anticipation to intercept and tidy distribution, marshalled occasional overlapping runs of Femenia well and offered more going forward as game wore on 8
Ben White: Carried the ball forward well, good blocks to deny Kucka and Rose shots and his jinking run set up Smith Rowe’s opener. Strong display 8
Gabriel: Denied by Foster from excellent header but otherwise had little to do as Arsenal dominated possession and King was left isolated 7
Bukayo Saka: Unlucky to be offside for early disallowed goal, a few misplaced passes but was a threat down the right and gave ex-Spurs man Rose a torrid afternoon 8
Albert Sambi Lokonga: Tidied up well and distributed nicely from the base of midfield, another who benefitted from Watford’s lack of ambition 7
Ainsley Maitland-Niles: Two brilliant, threaded through balls early on, one of which set up Saka’s disallowed goal. Poise under pressure in middle of park. Quiet second half 7
Emile Smith Rowe: Excellent set piece delivery and some delightful touches in tight spaces, looked set to be a frustrating afternoon until excellent finish into bottom corner sealed third goal in three games 8
Alexandre Lacazette: Nice lob to set up disallowed goal, dropped deep to link play but faded as the game wore on and was replaced by Odegaard 7
Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang: Poor touch resulted in Saka’s offside, then missed penalty when finesse might have been better than power to beat 38-year-old Foster. Frustrating afternoon as he had another goal ruled out for offside 5
Subs: Odegaard (7), Elneny (6)
Watford player ratings
Ben Foster: At fault for what could have been the opener, but then made sharp saves from Aubameyang’s penalty, Gabriel header and late Lokonga shot. Unlucky to be on losing side 8
Kiko Femenia: Good energy down the flank and benefitted from lack of an obvious left-winger in Arsenal’s ranks, with Smith Rowe often cutting inside 6
Nicolas Nkoulou: Perhaps fortunate not to give a penalty away but was solid enough otherwise in a dogged Watford rearguard 6
Craig Cathcart: Strong when defending set pieces and one on one but struggled at times with movement of Aubameyang and Smith Rowe 6
Danny Rose: Tough afternoon for the former Tottenham man who was run ragged by Saka and gave away a clumsy penalty, lucky not to be booked on a couple of occasions 3
Moussa Sissoko: Quieter game than Kucka, the terrier alongside him in midfield, and took a couple of painful looking blows. Faded in second half 4
Ismaila Sarr: Appeared to announce himself in the game when forcing a foul out of Tomiyasu but was then switched back onto right flank and offered little thereafter 4
Ozan Tufan: Showed nice footwork when able to get forward but increasingly saw the game pass him by. Replaced by Joao Pedro when Ranieri switched formation after the opener 4
Juraj Kucka: Epitomised Watford’s display; tough-tackling, energetic nuisance in midfield but pushed it too far with a couple of wild lunges and was sent off for two bookings 6
Emmanuel Dennis: Struggled to get into the game and switched wings with Sarr, a willing runner but another who did not seem to benefit from Ranieri’s tactics 5
Joshua King: Early yellow card stifled some of his aggression, left isolated at times but held the ball up well and cannot be faulted for effort 7
Subs: Joao Pedro (5), Hernandez (5)
from Football – inews.co.uk https://ift.tt/3o9OKCn
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