Watford striker Odion Ighalo eyeing Arsenal upset
Arsenal are "flying" and Alexis Sanchez is "scoring for fun", but Watford can still cause an upset in their Barclays Premier League clash on Saturday, according to striker Odion Ighalo.
The Gunners will travel to Vicarage Road for the evening kick-off with their 3-0 victory against Manchester United before the international break still fresh in their minds.
Sanchez, who manager Arsene Wenger revealed is a doubt for the trip, scored a brace in Arsenal's win against United.
The Chile forward also netted a hat-trick in Arsenal's 5-2 victory at Leicester last month, was on the scoresheet in his side's 3-2 Champions League defeat to Olympiakos, and three goals on international duty has taken his tally to nine from his last five games.
"Arsenal are flying and are doing well and you can see Alexis Sanchez is scoring for fun now," said Ighalo. "It is not going to be easy for us because they are a good team, a Champions League team, and they play some of the best football here in England.
"But we hope to cope with that. We hope to fight until the end. We will see what happens and a positive result would send out a signal to the other teams that they should be careful of Watford."
Watford winger Ikechi Anya, midfielder Valon Behrami and defender Allan Nyom are all in line to feature for the visit of Arsenal on Saturday.
Anya (calf), Behrami (calf) and Nyom (knee) did not play during the international break but Hornets boss Quique Sanchez Flores expects the trio to be fit.
Flores added that playmaker Jurado, who missed the 1-1 draw against Bournemouth, will return to training in 10 days, but defensive duo Joel Ekstrand (knee) and Tommie Hoban (knee) remain sidelined with long-term injuries.
Arsenal centre-half Laurent Koscielny is close to a return from a hamstring problem and faces a fitness test, while midfielder Mathieu Flamini (hamstring) and captain Mikel Arteta (dead leg) are both expected to be available for selection.
Midfielder Jack Wilshere (fibula), forward Danny Welbeck and Czech midfielder Tomas Rosicky (both knee) continue their rehabilitation.
Arsenal manager Wenger has challenged his side to recapture the hunger which saw them blow away Manchester United when they head to Watford on Saturday.
The Gunners resume domestic action at Vicarage Road for the late televised kick-off looking to maintain momentum from their demolition of the Red Devils, who were taken apart with three goals inside the first 20 minutes.
Wenger, though, knows that stunning performance will quickly be forgotten should they fail to deliver against the Hornets.
"It can increase the belief and the hunger of the team (to win convincingly). On the other hand you have to show that you can come in to every game with that focus," said Wenger.
"The level of champions and people who want to fight at the top is urgency - and urgency is something that keeps you alert, so we know what will be expected of us.
"We have to be conscious that it will be a different game at Watford, but the level of urgency is a big part of success and that is what we work on."
Source: PAR
