Wenger gets boost as Arsenal sink Watford

LONDON: Arsene Wenger received a welcome boost as Arsenal eased a little of the pressure on their beleaguered boss with a 3-0 win over Watford on Sunday.

After a wretched run left Wenger fighting to save his job, a 2-0 win at AC Milan in the Europa League on Thursday offered the Frenchman temporary respite from the torrent of abuse he has endured this season.

Maintaining the momentum from that last-16 victory in the San Siro, Wenger’s side ended a run of three successive Premier League defeats with a solid display at the Emirates Stadium.Shkodran Mustafi’s early opener and a cool finish from Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang put them in control.

In a moment of sweet vindication, Watford captain Troy Deeney, who had questioned Arsenal’s spirit earlier this season, had a second-half penalty saved by Petr Cech.Henrikh Mkhitaryan’s strike wrapped up the points, but there was concern for Wenger as Mustafi limped off in the closing stages.

Winning the Europa League guarantees qualification for next season’s Champions League and, with Arsenal’s hopes of achieving that goal via a top-four finish looking bleak, it was no surprise Wenger prioritised the continental competition.With the second leg against Milan looming on Thursday, Wenger rested Aaron Ramsey and Laurent Koscielny and left Jack Wilshere on the bench.

Aubameyang was one of the established stars who started for Arsenal and the Gabon striker should have opened the scoring when he raced onto Mesut Ozil’s pass but shot straight at Watford goalkeeper Orestis Karnezis.

For the second successive home game, a significant amount of seats were empty as fans stayed away in protest at Wenger’s woes.The subdued atmosphere lent an ‘end of an era’ feel to the match, but it didn’t bother Arsenal, who had a point to prove to Watford captain Deeney.

On Saturday, Marcus Rashford scored twice as Manchester United beat their arch-rivals Liverpool 2-1 in a highly-charged derby to consolidate second place in the Premier League table.

With runaway leaders Manchester City on course for a third Premier League title, second place is the best the chasing pack can hope for and United moved five points ahead of Liverpool.United stifled Liverpool’s exhilarating attack early on at Old Trafford and raced into a two-goal lead with 24 minutes on the clock after a double from Rashford.

Eric Bailly’s bizarre own goal gave Liverpool hope in the second half, but United held on for a first victory over their North West rivals since January, 2016.“Perfect result. I wouldn’t go so far as saying it was a perfect performance. In the first half, the game gave us the opportunity to be direct, fast and score goals, more than we did. We were worth the win,” United manager Jose Mourinho said.

Fifth-placed Chelsea moved to within four points of Liverpool after a nervy 2-1 win over Crystal Palace.A deflected strike from Willian and a Martin Kelly own goal put Chelsea in control at the break, but they took their foot off the gas in the second half.

Patrick van Aanholt got his side back in the match in stoppage time, but it was too little too late for Palace as Chelsea held out for a first win in four matches in all competitions.It was an important afternoon at the bottom of the table too, with West Ham United slipping to a damaging 3-0 home defeat by Burnley to leave them three points above the relegation zone.

There were unsavoury scenes at London Stadium where pitch invasions and mass protests in the stands forced owners David Sullivan and David Gold to leave the director’s box, with police brought in to restore order.

Matters on the pitch added to the vitriolic mood, with Ashley Barnes and a Chris Wood double steering Burnley to a second win in a week.In the North East, Newcastle United secured a 3-0 victory over Southampton to move five points clear of the bottom three, piling the pressure on Saints boss Mauricio Pellegrino.

Two goals from Kenedy, on loan from Chelsea, and a Matt Ritchie strike were enough for a second successive Premier League home win for Rafael Benitez’s side.West Bromwich Albion’s woes continued as they slipped to a 4-1 home defeat by Leicester City.

Salomon Rondon gave West Brom the lead at The Hawthorns, but four Leicester goals without reply ensured West Brom stayed bottom, eight points from safety.Swansea City, who had Jordan Ayew sent off in the 11th minute, held Huddersfield Town to a 0-0 draw at the John Smith’s Stadium while Wayne Rooney’s penalty miss mattered little as Everton beat Brighton and Hove Albion 2-0 at Goodison Park.