NO HOLS BARRED FOR CLAUDIO

MIKE WALTERS

CLAUDIO RANIERI’S record against bogey team Arsenal is so dismal he once gave his players a week’s holiday for only narrowly losing at the Emirates.

After just one win in 18 meetings with the Gunners in his managerial career, the odds are stacked in favour of the Tinkerman slipping further towards the quicksand tomorrow.

Watford’s latest coach has had less joy against the Gunners than any other club he has faced as a manager in Italy or England. However, the 70-year-old (above) fondly recalls the only time he outsmarted them. He said: “My God... I remember the only victory was at Highbury, to reach the Champions League semifinal with Chelsea in 2004.

“I know very well I lost, or drew, so many times, but this is a new match and a chance to achieve something positive.

“I also know very well the strength and qualities of the Arsenal players and coach, and we need to play very well, without making any mistakes.” Ranieri lost just three games en route to Leicester landing the holy grail five years ago – two of them against Arsenal. The first was a 5-2 defeat at the King Power early in the season, and their final bump in the road was Danny Welbeck’s stoppage-time winner in the return.

The Hornets head coach said: “We had a difficult sequence of games against Liverpool, Manchester City and Arsenal.

“Jamie Vardy said to me, ‘Coach, if we get nine points from those three games, how about you give us one week off?’ I told him yes, it was a deal, and we collected six points by beating Liverpool 2-0 and winning at City.

“Then we lost at Arsenal, but we played very well and I said to my players, ‘Look, you deserved three more points, so you have earned your holiday’.”