Arsenal leapfrogged Chelsea for fourth place in the Premier League table with a 1-0 victory at 10-man Watford on Monday night.
An early Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang strike and a Troy Deeney red card paved the way for Unai Emery’s men to move ahead of their London neighbours on goal differential with just five matches left to play.
And it was Aubameyang who had the visitors off to a dream start after just 10 minutes. The Gabon international pressured Watford goalkeeper Ben Foster as he received a back-pass into the six-yard box, and his commitment ultimately paid off when he got a leg in front of the attempted clearance and deflected the ball into the Watford net.
Deeney was then shown a straight red card one minute later for an extended arm to the head of Arsenal midfielder Lucas Torreira after the Uruguayanthe had released the ball for a teammate.
The Watford striker’s protests fell on unsympathetic ears and his side were forced to play the final 80 minutes down a man, though they were not without chances in a surprisingly open match.
The win gives Arsenal 66 points from 33 matches, while 10th-placed Watford remain on 46.