LONDON, ENGLAND - JANUARY 31: Arsenal players show their dejection after Watford's second goal during the Premier League match between Arsenal and Watford at Emirates Stadium on January 31, 2017 in London, England. (Photo by Shaun Botterill/Getty Images)
Arsenal Vs Watford: Complete Player Ratings
Arsenal conceded two goals in the first half to a disciplined Watford side and failed to bounce back. Here are the complete player ratings.
Arsenal struggled to recreate the promising form that they showed in their win over Southampton at the weekend, especially in a tepid first-half in which they were utterly dominated by a Watford side that has just one win in their last 10 Premier League games prior to Tuesday’s victory. There was a significant improvement in the second half but it was too little too late for a club that is now seeing their title chances slip away in agonising fashion.
Here are the complete player ratings from the 2-1 loss.
PETR CECH
GK, Arsenal FC6
The veteran goalkeeper was left lying on the ground as Watford’s first goal spun past him, and he spilt the ball directly into Troy Deeney’s path for the second goal. He made some reflex stops in the game, but both of those goals seemed soft and Cech hasn’t made any outstanding saves in what seems like months.
GABRIEL PAULISTA
RB, Arsenal FC4
Gabriel was given a yellow card early in the match and didn’t do anything especially well, lacking on the defensive end and definitely lacking on the offensive end. His physicality proved important against this Watford side, but he ended up having an awful game.
LAURENT KOSCIELNY
CB, Arsenal FC5
Laurent Koscielny and his partner didn’t have much protection in midfield in the first half. But he didn’t do himself much justice, making a number of mistakes passing the ball and clearing the ball from defense. It was one of his most under-whelming performances at the back, and Mustafi didn’t look overly pleased with him at the end of the game.
SHKODRAN MUSTAFI
CB, Arsenal FC6
Shkodran Mustafi looked like a leader without soldiers tonight as he was almost a spectator for the opening two goals. He, like Koscielny, misplaced a number of passes in the opening minutes and that definitely didn’t help the Gunners’ start. However, he does look more in touch with the game than his French partner in defense, which is worrying.
NACHO MONREAL
LB, Arsenal FC4
When Hector Bellerin is playing, Arsenal’s right flank is always a strong point of attack. Without him, the full-backs have minimal influence in attack. Monreal’s game has declined over the past year and a new left-back is needed this summer because it was another poor showing on both sides of the ball. A yellow card for simulation to cap it off was not what fans like to see.
FRANCIS COQUELIN
MID, Arsenal5
Francis Coquelin’s ability passing the ball is a clear detriment to Arsenal’s attacking game, and starting the match with him and Aaron Ramsey in central midfield was disastrous. The Frenchman won the ball back a few times – but he was still a liability in times where he needed to keep the ball moving, and it cost his team today.
AARON RAMSEY
MID, Arsenal FC2
Aaron Ramsey had a nightmare of a first 19 minutes before coming off with an injury that could sideline him for another long period. Why he was given the spot in the starting eleven over Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain, who performed like a star against Southampton at the weekend, is confusing. He made it much worse for himself directly caused a goal to go in by not tracking Etienne Capoue after the French midfielder had taken the ball from him. Terrible performance.
ALEX IWOBI
MID, Arsenal FC6.5
Alex Iwobi was ineffective in the first half but improved after Arsene Wenger’s likely rousing half-time speech. A live wire in the Watford final third, it was Iwobi who scored the goal that brought Arsenal back into the game. However, the young Nigerian couldn’t unlock the door and was taken off for Lucas Perez late in the game.
ALEXIS SANCHEZ
MID, Arsenal FC6.5
Alexis’ effort is always visible and his ball for the assist to Iwobi was creative and well-hit, but other than that he failed to deliver any end product. As a striker in the second half he was unable to get many touches in the box, and this was by Watford’s design.
MESUT OZIL
MID, Arsenal FC4
Mesut Ozil’s touch was off and he didn’t look like he had any energy for this game, which is interesting considering he didn’t play this weekend. Ahead of a game against Chelsea one would think Ozil would try and get some momentum, but Ozil looked like a ghost of himself and couldn’t help the team very much.
OLIVIER GIROUD
ST, Arsenal FC4
Olivier Giroud needed to be taken off at half time – and thank god he was, because he was totally out of sorts in the first half. He couldn’t play his usual one touch passes to his teammates and couldn’t win aerial duels, which rendered him basically useless.
THEO WALCOTT
SUB, Arsenal FC5
Having come on as a substitute, Theo Walcott huffed and puffed but couldn’t make anything noteworthy happen on the offensive end. His shots didn’t often test Hurelho Gomes, and he was often uninvolved in the side’s attacking moves – something worrying is that Walcott is completing fewer passes per game than ever in 2016-17.
ALEX OXLADE-CHAMBERLAIN
SUB, Arsenal FC5
The Ox came on early in the game to replace Aaron Ramsey and many people hoped he would impact the game from midfield the same way he did at St. Mary’s at the week-end. On the contrary: he looked unfit to play in the second half for about 15 minutes and was basically a passenger while his teammates tried to get back into the match.
LUCAS PEREZ
SUB, Arsenal FC5.7
The new signing has looked lively all season and he nearly did the business after coming on, hitting the crossbar with a fierce shot. Very unlucky for Lucas.
