Arsenal just edged through their Premier League clash against Watford with a 1-0 victory, despite playing most of the game with a man advantage.
Troy Deeney was sent off early on for an elbow in Lucas Torreira’s face, not long after Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang had given Arsenal the lead by punishing a Ben Foster mistake. However, rather than sparking a spree of goalscoring, that ended up being the only time either side found the net.
Unai Emery won’t care much, as his side got the three away points they desperately needed, moving back up into the top four with a game in hand on Chelsea and a two-point lead on Manchester United.
Let’s have a look at our player ratings for the clash.
4Substitutes
Mesut Özil 7
Özil came on for Torreira at half-time, and it didn’t take him long to create a couple of good chances for Mkhitaryan. He could’ve done better with a couple of shots of his own though, finding space in the box nicely but not quite connecting with the finishes.
Matteo Guendouzi 6
Guendouzi added some energy in midfield, and he played some nice forward thinking passes. However, he also kicked a five-yard pass straight off the pitch at one point, and he should’ve chipped Özil in for a second goal late on.
Ainsley Maitland-Niles 8
Maitland-Niles was rested from the start, after playing a lot of games recently, but there’s no doubt he’s been performing well in general. That was the case again in the final 20 minutes, as he supported the attack well and made a vital block at the other end after Gray rounded Leno.