OPINION - Five of my thoughts following the Arsenal game.
After attending Saturday's 0-3 defeat to Arsenal, here are five of my main thoughts:
Hornets superb for 60 minutes.
Score-lines can frequently be misleading. Saturday's result is a perfect example of this. Whilst a 0-3 defeat sounds like Arsenal had everything their own way, the true reality is that this simply wasn't the case. For 60 minutes, Watford more than matched their opponents and Quique Sanchez Flores' game plan was certainly paying off. The Hornets hassled and harried and caused Arsenal some serious problems. Capoue and Watson pressurised the Arsenal midfielders and Troy Deeney was a consistent menace to the Arsenal defence. In fact, if Odion Ighalo had taken his chance in the first half, Watford could have been ahead at half-time. Even before that, Odion Ighalo would surely have had a tap-in if Laurent Koscielny didn't throw himself in front of Troy Deeney's square ball to the Nigerian. In the opening fifteen minutes of the second half, the Hornets continued to attack but their eagerness to get men forward proved to be their downfall, as in one blistering counter attack, Arsenal were ahead in what was a cruel turn of events. Once the Gunners got their noses in front, they never looked back. But don't be fooled by the score-line, as Arsenal had to work hard for their victory and credit therefore must go to the Golden Boys and Quique Sanchez Flores. If Watford can replicate that performance for 90 minutes on a consistent basis, I'm certain we will be fine come May.
Arsenal's quality paid off in the end.
Whilst Watford were superb for 60 minutes, you've also got to give credit to Arsenal. They always looked dangerous on the attack, especially when they've got talent like Sanchez, Ozil, Cazorla and Ramsey in their squad. Some of their play at times was mesmerising and the difference in quality was clear for all to see at Vicarage Road. Whilst 0-3 was harsh on Watford, Arsenal were clinical and their attacking play carved open the Hornets tiring defence. In the space of 12 minutes, Arsenal turned the game on its head. The game was finely poised up till the hour mark, but from then on, the Gunners were in the driving seat. Watford's performance was admirable but they were just beaten by a better team. I would say that Arsene Wenger's men are the best side that the Hornets have faced this season.
Etienne Capoue was superb.
Watford's record signing was superb on Saturday and he looked every inch a Premier League player. He was a joy to watch and never stopped running all game. He was literally everywhere on Saturday. One minute he would be hassling and harrying an Arsenal midfielder and the next minute, he would be breaking forward to aid the Hornets attack. His nutmeg on Santi Cazorla and fantastic cross-field ball to Troy Deeney in the first half was a thing of beauty. All of Watford's attacks went through the Frenchman, but the former Tottenham Hotspur man didn't forget about his defensive duties as well. He was never too far away from an Arsenal midfielder and at one point in the first half, his pressure on Cazorla forced the Spain international to play the ball back to his defence. Capoue wasn't afraid to put a tackle in either and he was flat on his back at full time, showcasing the amount of effort he put into the game. My man of the match on Saturday, without a shadow of a doubt.
Deeney battled admirably.
Over the years, we've become accustomed to Troy Deeney's battling performances up-front. On Saturday, the Watford captain was at it again and he never gave the Arsenal defence a moments piece. He battled and harassed the Arsenal defence all game whilst also performing selfless work for the Watford team. He wasn't afraid to track back and help the Watford defence when Arsenal were attacking and the Hornets striker didn't stop working all game. He so nearly set-up Ighalo for a tap-in during the first half and his pass with the outside of the boot to release Anya was exquisite and surely would have been played over and over again if it was David Silva or Mesut Ozil perhaps. Fingers crossed that he gets the goal that his performances deserve sooner rather than later, as that will certainly help the Watford captain's confidence.
Promising signs from Nathan Ake.
I'll admit, I was worried when I saw Nathan Ake starting at left-back on Saturday, especially when I saw the Arsenal line-up. But credit must go to the on-loan Chelsea man, as he went about his defensive duties well
in the first half. He put in some great challenges and wasn't afraid to break forward at times either. However, the less said about his attempted shot in the first half, the better! In the second half, Ake struggled, as Arsenal consistently attacked down the left-flank and he would have surely given away a penalty for a foul on Mesut Ozil, should Alexis Sanchez not have opened the scoring. His positioning and marking was suspect at times but Ake showcased his potential during the game. Arsenal had clearly analysed the 20-year-old as a weak-link in the Watford side, as a large percentage of their attacks came down the left-back. But, on the whole, I thought Ake did a reasonable job, considering he was facing a side of Arsenal's quality and I was encouraged by his performance on Saturday.