Wenger satisfied with Arsenal resolve as Cech keeps clean sheet No 200
First league win since February 3 as Deeney misses penalty for beaten Watford
Arsene Wenger credited his Arsenal’side as they returned to winning ways in the Premier League with a 3-0 triumph over Watford yesterday.
On a day when goalkeeper Petr Cech made history by becoming the first goalkeeper to keep 200 Premier League clean sheets, goals from Shkodran Mustafi, Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang and Henrikh Mkhitaryan at the Emirates Stadium gave the London side their first three points in the league since February 3.
Arsenal had ended a run of four successive losses in all competitions on Thursday when they were 2-0 victors at AC Milan in the first leg of their Europa League last-16 tie, and Wenger said it was important his team kept their momentum going.
“We have got the win today and overall I believe it was important to continue after Milan to show that consistency,” the Frenchman told Sky Sports.
“Watford came back strong in the second half but overall it was a convincing win and an important one.
“We have had a disappointing period and our supporters suffered like we suffered. But our job is to perform and stick together in important moment and get the fans back on side with our game.”
Wenger conceded that proceedings may well have been tighter had Cech not saved Troy Deeney’s spot-kick, which came on the hour mark with Arsenal two goals ahead at the time.
“It was a difficult game like you get in the Premier League, but overall the spirit and desire was good,” he said.
“The spirit kept us out of trouble. We dealt well with set pieces which is why they could not come back.
“At 2-0 they had a penalty and if they come back to 2-1 it is a fact we have a bit of fatigue and we could have been in trouble but we took advantage of that and you have to give credit to the players, they stuck together and of course a great penalty save.”
Cech’s achievement came after he had waited 11 games and three months to move off No 199.
It was his 38th clean sheet for Arsenal, with the first 162 achieved for Chelsea, who he had played for between 2004 and 2015.
“It is an unbelievable personal milestone,” Cech said.
“The first 18 games with nine clean sheets got me to 199, but then the past 11 games was sometimes frustrating but the most important thing is to win and so it was defeats that was more frustrating.”
The penalty save from Deeney, which saw the Czech Republic goalkeeper parry the ball away, was his first made in Arsenal colours and the first he had made in the league since 2011.
Deeney had converted a spot-kick against Cech when the sides met at Vicarage Road in October, and the Arsenal man enjoyed the chance to get one back on the Watford forward.
“He scored the penalty when we played in the first game over there,” he said. “Sometimes you just go with the feeling and today I felt it was going to be the right moment. My timing was quite good to put him off probably. It all clicked this time.”
Wenger said of Cech: “To the club and football in general. The records are interesting because they show a remarkable desire to stay at your best and as well a remarkable intelligence.”
Wenger made six changes from the side that had won in Milan and he said that he had rested players such as Jack Wilshere and Aaron Ramsey with one eye on the second leg on Thursday.
“I selected my team to have the chance to win the game today and also rest some players I did not want to get injured because we are not so far to the end of the season so any injuries you lose them for the rest of the season,” Wenger said.
He scored the penalty when we played in the first game over there. Sometimes you just go with the feeling PETR CECH Arsenal goalkeeper on stopping Troy Deeney’s penalty