Arsenal moved back into second place in the Barclays Premier League as goals from Alexis Sanchez, Olivier Giroud and Aaron Ramsey secured a 3-0 win at Watford.
Arsene Wenger's side turned on the style late in the match at Vicarage Road, with three unanswered goals in a 12-minute burst keeping them within two points of leaders Manchester City and level with Manchester United, who both won in their earlier matches.
After a first half lacking clear-cut chances, Arsenal broke the deadlock after 62 minutes as Sanchez shrugged of pre-match fears over his fitness to pounce on a loose ball in the penalty area and slot home.
Giroud, a substitute, added the second from Mesut Ozil's cutback, before Ramsey secured the points after a mazy run from Hector Bellerin.
Watford's previously tight defence had no answer to Arsenal's blitz and were hanging on as the visitors looked to extend their advantage in the closing minutes, with Giroud's bullet header well saved.
Further goals failed to materialise but Arsenal did enough to seal the three points, while Watford were left to rue a second defeat in their last three outings.
Having beaten Manchester United with a first-half flurry before the international break, Arsenal again started fast, although Theo Walcott's close-range header after five minutes was denied by Heurelho Gomes, who was part of an unchanged Watford line-up. The Brazilian goalkeeper was on hand again soon afterwards to punch away an effort from Sanchez.
Arsenal's attempts at controlling possession had limited Watford's openings but Troy Deeney tested Petr Cech with a powerful drive after 11 minutes, before he was denied by a crucial Laurent Koscielny challenge soon after.
Having weathered the storm, Arsenal began to press again and could have gone ahead just before the half-hour as Ramsey met Sanchez's left-wing cross at the back post, but the Wales midfielder volleyed over from five yards under pressure from Gomes.
Arsenal gradually built momentum after the interval and got the breakthrough just after the hour as intricate build-up play released Ozil into the area. Despite the German being felled by Nathan Ake, referee Mike Jones waved play-on and Sanchez converted via Gomes' right post.
Giroud doubled their lead four minutes after replacing Walcott as Ozil kept the ball alive inside the penalty area, and his reverse pass from the byline was judged perfectly for the Frenchman to fire into the roof of the net.
Before the hosts could react, they found themselves three goals behind as Bellerin cut in from the right and his simple pass found Ramsey, who clipped home with the aid of a deflection off Ikechi Anya.
Giroud went close to making it four with a late header from a Santi Cazorla corner, but Arsenal had done enough as they cruised to their sixth win of the season.
0 comments:
Post a Comment