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Arsenal vs Watford: Predicted starting XI in must-have away match

By Josh Sippie

LONDON, ENGLAND - MARCH 14: Laurent Koscielny of Arsenal celebrates after the UEFA Europa League Round of 16 Second Leg match between Arsenal and Stade Rennais at Emirates Stadium on March 14, 2019 in London, England. (Photo by Alex Morton/Getty Images)
LONDON, ENGLAND - MARCH 14: Laurent Koscielny of Arsenal celebrates after the UEFA Europa League Round of 16 Second Leg match between Arsenal and Stade Rennais at Emirates Stadium on March 14, 2019 in London, England. (Photo by Alex Morton/Getty Images) /
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Arsenal will need to be clever against Watford to avoid another Everton. Here is how they may line up to avoid more Premier League upset.

Arsenal, Laurent Koscielny
Arsenal, Laurent Koscielny(Photo by Alex Morton/Getty Images) /

Are you nervous? I’m nervous. And I have quite literally never predicted an Arsenal loss. Ever. That shows you how stupidly optimistic I can be/always am. Yet this may be one of the more nervy matches in awhile, for a couple reasons.

First of all, it runs the risk of looking quite similar to Everton. An annoying away fixture that we should absolutely be winning, but that takes on a whole new light when it comes to being an away match.

There are some key differences though. For starters. Neither Matteo Guendouzi nor Mohamed Elneny should be starting like they were against Everton. I love Guendouzi, but I could use a break for the moment.

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That’s a good thing. Lucas Torreira and Aaron Ramsey should both be available and, God willing, Granit Xhaka too. More on that later.

The counterpoint is that Sokratis is out with suspension. Annoying. Because all I want in life is Sokratis and Laurent Koscielny together, but we just can’t get that, and in return, we have to keep dealing with Shkodran Mustafi and the added nerves he constantly presents.

As far as formation goes, I don’t think that Unai Emery keeps the two striker set. It’s too much of a risk, and you don’t really have a player capable of playing a solo No. 10 role on the road, particularly with how much pressure he’s going to be under from this Watford midfield.

So I’m chalking it up as a 3-4-2-1 with a strong midfield four to match Watford’s, with one attacker up top to carry the counter attacks and finish off attacking moves.

More on that later. For now, let’s start in goal.

Keeper

Every time I get to type Bernd Leno here, I get more and more excited about it. He’s become such a difference maker on the club and it’s been awhile since we’ve been able to say that about a keeper. Keep it going, my man! Keep it going.

Enough of that. Back three is next. God help us all.