Watford 2-2 Arsenal: 5 talking points | Premier League 2019/20
In perhaps one of the most entertaining matches of the Premier League season so far, Watford and Arsenal shared a 2-2 draw in front of a ruckus Vicarage Road. Despite Watford’s best efforts, the Gunners went into half time with a 2-0 lead courtesy of an emphatic brace by Pierre Emerick-Aubameyang. In the second half, the game changed, and Watford completely took charge. A Tom Cleverley strike and Roberto Pereyra penalty later and the Hornets had got their just deserves.
The draw does more for Watford than it does for Arsenal. The Gunners desperately needed to win this match in order to stake their top 4 intentions, allowing them to go level on points with Manchester City. For Watford, they’ve doubled their points tally for the season with this single draw. But it’s perhaps the performance that will give Quique Sanchez Flores the most hope going forward.
Here are 5 talking points from Watford 2-2 Arsenal.
#5 Mesut Özil returns
Arsenal’s highest-paid player was finally able to make his first appearance of the season. The German had been nursing some fitness and minor injury problems, but Unai Emery deemed today as the right day to re-introduce the 30-year-old back to the Premier League. Mesut Özil’s display against Watford didn’t teach the footballing world anything new about the German’s playing ability. He’s brilliant in flashes but fails to reciprocate off the ball.
Özil was particularly influential in his pre-assist for the second goal, as he perfectly spotted Ainsley Maitland-Niles run on the side of the box. In addition to that, the former World cup winner completed three successful take-ons and 38 passes in a fairly average performance by his standards. Although he wasn’t at his best, the Gunners’ capitulation was far from his fault.