Real Football Man All of the Football, All of the time
Over the next two nights we have that rare occurrence of a full Midweek Premier League program, one that will undoubtedly add a twist in the tale at both the top and bottom ends of the table. For Arsenal they will be looking to hunt down the 8 point gap that Chelsea currently have over them and Tonight they play host to Watford at The Emirates.
After their F.A. Cup exploits at the weekend Arsenal will come into this game looking to extend their 5 game unbeaten run in the league. A run that has warranted 13 points from a maximum 15 with the only blot on the copy book coming in the 3-3 draw away at Bournemouth when Oliver Giroud snatched a point thanks to a late goal.
And late goals seem to be a recurring theme for Arsenal recently with last Sunday offering the perfect example. It looked very much like it was going to be two points dropped at home to Burnley after Andre Gray’s injury time spot kick but there was still time for more drama.
That’s because Laurent Koscielny was kicked in the head by Ben Mee’s high foot in the box and John Moss subsequently awarded his second spot kick in a matter of minutes. Whether the award was correct continues to be argued especially with Koscielny in an offside position.
But the contentious nature of the penalty had no effect on Alexis Sanchez as his Panenka style chip in the 98th minute meant that Arsenal would take all three points and top off a decent weekend by moving up to 2nd in the table above arch rivals Tottenham.
So they currently post the nearest threat to Antonio Conte’s Chelsea and that threat could get even closer should Liverpool happen to do them a favour at Anfield. If that was to happen then for Arsenal to take full advantage then they will need to make light work of a Watford side who have failed to win any of their last 7 league outings.
Walter Mazzari is under pressure due to that run of results and he has looked to alleviate that pressure by signing two new strikers in the past 7 days. Mauro Zarate will be a familiar name to many after previous Premier League stints while the capture of M’Baye Niang on loan from A.C. Milan will be cause for optimism.
Last season Watford’s results post Christmas saw The Hornets slip down the table after a top half position and this season history is seemingly repeating itself, they have slipped to 14th and although there is an 8 point buffer to the relegation zone they could do with a win sometime soon.
They thought that win may have come away at Bournemouth 10 days ago but Benik Afobe’s late equaliser meant that they had to make do with a share of the points. A result which meant it was a second successive league draw for Walter Mazzari’s men.
So you could say a slight improvement on results after a miserable holiday period but still not really a step in the right direction and with a short trip to The Emirates this Evening you do have to wonder if it will become 8 games without a win.
Arsenal are looking pretty imperious as of late especially in front of their own fans and a win Tonight coupled with a Chelsea defeat would heavily increase their chances of a title tilt. Whether Chelsea slip up remains to be seen but I think The Gunners will certainly do their bit. A routine home win for me.
