KEY POINTS

  • Arsenal are still seeking their first win of the 2016/17 campaign.
  • Watford are also winless this season, but came close to beating Chelsea in their second game.

Arsenal will travel to Vicarage Road to take on Watford in their third Premier League game of the 2016/17 campaign on Saturday (27 August).

Where to watch

Kick-off is 3pm BST. Live Radio commentary will be available on BBC Radio 5 Live. Catch the highlights on Match of the Day at 10.30pm BST on BBC One

Overview

Arsenal will travel to Watford for their third Premier League game of the new season still looking for their first win. The Gunners lost their opening game against Liverpool and managed a 0-0 draw against Leicester City in their second encounter at the King Power Stadium.

Arsene Wenger will be keen to put three points on the board and avoid falling even more behind their main title rivals Manchester United, Chelsea and Manchester City, who have won both their opening games. The French manager will have the same team from last weekend, but could have Mesut Ozil and Olivier Giroud available from the start as they continue to build fitness after missing a chunk of pre-season. Aaron Ramsey, Gabriel Paulista, Alex Iwobi and long-term absentees Per Mertesacker and Danny Welbeck will not travel to Vicarage Road.

Mesut Ozil
Mesut Ozil could make his first start of the season after coming on as a second-half substitute against Leicester City last weekend Getty

The Gunners are already four points adrift of their main rivals, and this has frustrated the supporters, who have called for the manager to strengthen the team. Summer signing Rob Holding has been deployed at centre-back in the absence of the Mertesacker and Gabriel and is likely to keep his place alongside Koscielny for the Watford clash. The club have finally made a breakthrough in negotiations and could confirm two new signings by the weekend for German centre-back Shkodran Mustafi and Spanish forward Lucas Perez.

Watford are in a position similar to their opponents as they too are seeking their first win of the campaign. They currently sit just one place below the Gunners in 14<sup>th after two games. Walter Mazzari came close to causing an upset and beating Chelsea, but late goals from Michy Batshuayi and Diego Costa saw them suffer their first loss of the campaign.

The Hornets have been busy in the days leading up to the end of the transfer market and confirmed three new signings earlier in the week. Etienne Capoue has arrived from Sunderland, Daryl Janmaat has signed from Newcastle United, while Roberto Pereyra has arrived from Juventus.

The trio will be available for the visit of Arsenal, but the former Napoli manager has indicated that it is unlikely all three will start the game.

Match stats

  • Arsenal have won their last six league games against Watford, scoring a total of 16 goals.
  • But the Hornets claimed their first win against the Gunners for 28 years when they knocked them out of the FA Cup in March.

What the managers say

Walter Mazzari: I need to evaluate (the new signings). They have just arrived and I need to be sure they know what they need to do. They will be there; I'm not sure if they will start or play later. I want to start from the good things we did against Chelsea. It's nearly impossible all three will start. I need to take into consideration the XI who played against Chelsea.

Arsene Wenger: Watford is always traditionally a difficult place to go, but it'll be another big test for us because we have to prepare for commitment. We have to prepare for intensity and we will have to play at our best to have the chance to score goals.

Betting Odds (Betfair)

  • Watford Win: 9/2
  • Draw: 27/10
  • Arsenal Win: 13/20

Team News

Watford

Possible XI: Gomes; Cathcart, Britos, Prodl, Janmaat; Behrami, Capoue, Amrabat, Zuniga; Deeney, Ighalo

Arsenal

Possible XI: Cech; Bellerin, Holding, Koscielny, Monreal; Xhaka, Coquelin; Oxlade-Chamberlain, Ozil, Sanchez; Walcott.

Arsene Wenger Premier League Arsenal FC Watford FC