Arsenal Vs Watford: 5 things we learned – Unai Emery has questions to answer

4. Lacazette sorely missed

Arsenal’s greatest issues came from their inability to control the match through protecting possession in good areas of the pitch. They played out from the back poorly, unable to progress high up the pitch, they allowed Watford to dictate the match, especially in the second half, and they crumbled defensively because of the pressure they were under.

There are lots of reasons for this, but one key one is the absence of Alexandre Lacazette. Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang was terrific in his goalscoring, but his all-around play was again lacking, unable to protect the ball with his back to the goal. Nicolas Pepe, similarly, was quiet throughout, while the team lacked a focal point to play off.

Lacazette excels with his back to the goal. He has a brilliant first touch, he is strong on the ball, he has good vision and awareness to pick out teammates and play forwards. This is the exactly the type of player Arsenal needed. They invited pressure onto themselves because they could not hold the ball up, and Lacazette sat on the sidelines did not help.