Arsenal beat Watford 3-1 to ease pressure on Wenger

LONDON (Reuters) - A fine first half garnished by goals from Santi Cazorla, Alexis Sanchez and Mesut Ozil gave Arsenal a 3-1 win at Watford for their first Premier League victory of the season, easing the pressure on long-serving manager Arsene Wenger on Saturday.

(Reuters)

Under fire from fans demanding new signings before the transfer window closes on Wednesday, Wenger was given some breathing space after Cazorla drilled in a ninth-minute penalty and Sanchez made it 2-0 in the 39th with a scrambled finish.

Ozil, who pulled all the strings for the Gunners in the opening period, superbly headed home the third on the stroke of halftime after an inch-perfect cross by the lively Sanchez.

Halftime substitute Roberto Pereyra pulled one back for the home side on his Premier League debut when he curled in an unstoppable shot from 15 yards in the 57th minute after a pinball-style ricohet fell kindly for him.

(Writing by Zoran Milosavljevic; Editing by Neville Dalton)