Arsenal survived a scare to beat Waford at Vicarage Road this afternoon – and Granit Xhaka will be extremely relieved.
The Gunners were cruising toward a comfortable 3-1 victory away to the relegation-threatened Hornets.
However, Moussa Sissoko reduced the deficit to one with a couple of minutes of normal time remaining, emanating from a mistake by the Arsenal midfielder.
The Switzerland international needlessly conceded possession with a raking 40-yard pass which ultimately handed the ball to the hosts.
And from there, Sissoko, a former Tottenham man, wound up giving Roy Hodgson’s outfit a lifeline.
Andy Townsend has described Xhaka’s decision as ‘very strange’.
He said on NBC Sport‘s feed: “It all started with a very strange ball from Granit Xhaka who went square when he could’ve gone forward. From that, well that’s really good work from Sissoko.
“I just don’t understand. He had the ball right on the halfway line and went square with a 40-yard pass and gave the ball away.”
The former Borussia Monchengladbach midfielder is guilty of over-playing the ball at times, particularly when Arsenal simply need to keep possession.
However, it didn’t prove detrimental for the North Londoners, who moved fourth in the Premier League standings as a result of this victory.
The Emirates Stadium outfit have won four league games in succession now, but all four have been by a one-goal margin.
If there’s one criticism of Arteta’s side, it’s a failure to truly kill an encounter off, but Xhaka’s Hollywood passes aside, they’re undeniably getting better.
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