Arsenal Vs Watford: A record-breaking day, in more ways than one

Arsenal dispatched Watford in fairly comfortable fashion on Sunday afternoon, breaking a number of records in the process. Here’s what they achieved.

Arsenal weren’t quite at their best in their 3-0 dismantling of Watford on Sunday afternoon. They were deserving of the victory with some crisp, free-flowing football played and some lovely goals scored, but there were moments of nervousness and causes for concern. However, in summary, this was a record-setting day for the Gunners.

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Perhaps the story of the game was Petr Cech. After a number of bumbling mistakes in recent weeks, the experienced goalkeeper’s role in the side had been called into question a little. But here, he produced an excellent display.

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The first, and perhaps most important record, he achieved was the remarkable reaching of 200 Premier League clean sheets, the first shot-stopper to each reach the astonishing landmark. He had been sat on 199 ever since December 16th, a 1-0 win over Newcastle. Cech had played 11 league games since that time, conceding at least one goal in each and every one of them. The record was mentioned relentlessly by commentators and pundits. It was beginning to hang over him.

But Cech did more than just not concede. He saved a penalty. It is the first time that he has saved a penalty for Arsenal — this was the 16th penalty that he had faced since his 2015 switch from Chelsea –, and it is the first time since February 2011, seven years ago, that Cech denied someone from the spot. They are certainly two monkeys he will be happy to get off his back.

The other impressive records that were set involved Mesut Ozil and his assists: He is now the fastest player to reach 50 assists in the league in 141 games, bettering Eric Cantona’s record by two matches, proving his relentless creativity throughout his four-and-a-half years in North London, despite periods of disastrously poor form.

Arsene Wenger also recorded his 700th win in charge of the Gunners, done so in 1,222 games, yielding a win percentage, for those curious to know, of 57.3%. For all of the recent turbulence of the club that many attribute to the stubbornness of Wenger, to win 700 games for one club is an astounding achievement that should be praised.

Meanwhile, Shkodran Mustafi’s opening goal, a looped header from Ozil’s record-breaking free-kick, was the 1000th that Arsenal have scored in the Premier League, the second team to have reached that landmark after Manchester United.

Next: Arsenal Vs Watford: 5 things we learned

This was a record-breaking day for the home side, in more ways than one, and while there is a great dejection and resignation rippling through the fanbase at this current time, it is still important to recognise some of the achievements of the club, the individual players, and the manager.