Mertesacker: Arsenal Did Not Make Good Use Of The Ball

Per Mertesacker was unhappy with the fact that his teammates did not rise to challenge after Watford equalised.

The Germany international defender gave Arsenal the lead in the first half. However, a second half penalty from Troy Deeney restored parity.

Mertesacker does not know if the penalty was worth it, but bemoaned the fact that Arsenal became wasteful, as Cleverley scored a late winner.

“I’m not sure, I cannot tell [if it was a penalty]. Honestly, it’s so quick these actions, it’s difficult to judge and the referee made that decision,” the German defender told Arsenal’s website.

“I think for us it was kind of a wake-up call, but it wasn’t loud enough.”

Mertesacker said his team were wasteful in possession against Watford.

“I think that’s what we lacked, especially in the second half. You know when we got the ball we missed a chance, but we missed as well to play, we missed it completely,” he said.

“That’s what we did really well in the first half, where we regained possession, kept possession, that was really good.

“In the second half we just wasted the ball and that’s obviously not enough.

“If you just protect and you have no chances on the break and you miss one chance to kill the game, then it’s difficult in the Premier League to win any game.”