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For the first time in quite some while, the final day of the season is of little value to Arsenal. They’re not in contention for any European places neither are they anywhere near the top of the table too. As for Watford, this game meant everything to them with their very survival in the Premier League reliant on it. The Hornets started the day in the bottom three, level on points with 17th placed Aston Villa.
With nothing but pride on the line for the Gunners, Mikel Arteta’s men were gifted a 1st-minute penalty as Alexandre Lacazette was kneed in the back by Craig Dawson. Pierre Emerick-Aubameyang went on to the subsequent spot-kick. Against the run of play, Arsenal doubled their lead 20 minutes later through a deflected Kieran Tierney shot.
Star man Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang doubled his tally in the 34th minute with a moment of individual brilliance as he set himself up for an overhead kick. Watford gained some much-needed hope as David Luiz would give away his 5th penalty of the season, which Troy Deeney stepped up to convert just before half-time.
The second half started similarly to the first, with Watford on the front foot. They got their hopes up with a Danny Welbeck goal with 34 minutes to go. However, the Gunners hung on by the skin of their teeth, seeing them move up to an 8th placed finish in the league. As for Watford, their missed chances came back to haunt them as they missed out on PL survival by 1 point, meaning they’ll be playing Championship football next season.
Here are 5 talking points from Arsenal’s 3-2 win over Watford.
#5 Switch to a 4-3-3
Since the lockdown, Mikel Arteta has decided to deploy his Arsenal team in a compact 3-4-3. He stated that this was a temporary solution as it would provide defensive solidity at the back.
Today, he felt confident enough to switch back to a 4-3-3 but the change in shape would favour a rampant Watford team. In the opening 23 minutes, Watford’s 4-4-2 penned Arsenal in and exploited the space down the flanks, often creating 4v2 overloads on the Arsenal centre-backs.
Reports suggest that Arteta wants a centre-back, defensive midfielder and an attacking midfielder in the summer window, that AM would link the front three and midfield. Today, Joe Willock played in the #8/#10 position, however, he failed to create one single chance, further reiterating Arsenal’s inability to function in a 4-3-3 right now.
#4 Pierre Emerick-Aubameyang’s consistency
It’s imperative for Arsenal to tie Aubameyang down to a new contract in the summer. The 31-year-old has been in stupendous form this season, scoring 22 league goals in 36 appearances. Arsenal may have finished in 8th place but without the forward’s goals, they may have found themselves closer to a relegation battle.
Today with the Golden Boot in touching distance, the Gabonese international scored a brace, finishing just one behind the winner Jamie Vardy (23). Across the past two seasons, no player in the PL has scored more goals than Aubameyang (44). Bear in mind he’s done this in the 5th least creative team in the league, whilst playing out wide on the left.
#3 Arsenal’s vulnerabilities
Pure desire was always going to be a major factor in this game. Arsenal came into this game with nothing to play for while Watford knew this was their cup final. The game played out that way and even though the Gunners led for the whole game, Watford were by far the better team for the 90 minutes.
Similar to the performance at Villa Park, Arsenal looked shaky out of possession, with Watford forcing turnovers and regularly getting in behind. Arsenal conceded 19 shots on goal and misplaced 77 passes throughout a game they were fortunate to get any points out of. For Arteta, this proved to be a worrying outing for the Gunners, only six days ahead of the FA Cup final.
#2 Emiliano Martinez keeps the scoreline down
Ever since Bernd Leno got stretchered off away at Brighton, Emiliano Martinez has been a rock in between the sticks. The 27-year-old has waited years for a first-team opportunity, and he has more than seized his moment. Today up against a rampant Watford side, the keeper was forced into making 4 game-changing saves. When his defence failed him severally, Martinez stood up tall and ensured Arsenal’s slender lead was kept intact.
Wave after wave of the visitors' attacks didn’t give the Argentinean any time to regain his composure as he knew he’d be in the firing line due to his defence’s inability to stop the crosses coming in.
His point-blank save from Welbeck in the final quarter of the game secured all three points for the Gunners. There are rumblings that Bernd Leno could be in contention to play against Chelsea on Saturday, but based on the past few weeks, Martinez doesn’t deserve to be dropped for anyone.
#1 Watford relegated
After 5 years in the Premier League, Watford has been relegated back to the Championship. The Hornets have finished 19th in the table, just 1 point behind 17th-placed Aston Villa. That position can be attributed to the team only scoring 36 goals all season, whilst conceding 64 in the process. In today’s game, Troy Deeney & co. put in a heroic performance at the Emirates, fighting for every second ball and putting their all into each duel.
Against Arsenal, the Championship side won 23 aerial duels, had 8 corners, attempted 19 shots on goal and shared 49.1% of the possession. Even though their last two games were against Manchester City and Arsenal, many will look back at the decision to sack Nigel Pearson so late in the season with bewilderment.
These Watford players have had to adjust to three different managers in one campaign, an instability that has definitely contributed to their downfall.
