I can't help thinking that the final day of the season at home to Swansea will be a winner takes all. Hopefully home crowds will be allowed.
Oh lordy! I still haven't forgotten that dreadful match when we contrived to lose to them having been 1-0 up.
I think the key to Sarr playing well is someone like Sema on the other wing (I know that sounds strange), last night most of the time we had 2 or 3 players continually on Sarr (most of the time dragging him down) and he couldn’t find any space. When we have another skill player on the other wing if Sarr is overrun we switch sides , this then frees up Sarr as the opposition players switch to the other side. was a great goal from Sarr as it wasn’t the easiest angle , but noticed that later on when he was 1 on 1 with a defender rather than take him on, he went to the side to give other players time to catch up, we need to get him thinking 1:1 go for goal, the players behind me running up the pitch can pick up the rebound if I miss.
Apart from the fact he didn’t actually say that so shouldn’t be in quotation marks, it was his stage set up to his intended audience - Big Sam - what he’s really saying is ‘I can still do it in the EPL and I’m a leader, come get me before the window shuts’. He’s got to big himself up. Sales talk.
First half was awful to watch but we really picked it up second half. The formation didn't work at the start at Xisco realised that quickly and kept shifting midfielders about but it still would have been much better if we had PZ out wide as opposed to Cleverley/Hughes. Really picked it up in the second half and deserved the 3 points.
I have criticised Troy this season but he looked a lot fitter last night and he played well especially in the second half.
Interesting, in all of our three away wins all of our goals (Derby and Birmingham especially) and last night have come towards the end of the matches, obviously doing something right on the training ground!
I’ve no issue at all with us growing slowly into an away match. The two previous matches we’d won on the road this season saw us score the only goal of the game after 76 minutes and 85 minutes respectively. So in other words, we’ve failed to win any away match this season in which we’ve scored before the 64th minute. (The time of last night’s opener) Contrast this with away matches in which we actually have scored early. We took the lead after 3 minutes at QPR then looked poor and fell to a fairly late equaliser. Worse still was that costly loss at Swansea, where we took the lead after 20 mins only to get beaten. We have in fact only scored two first half goals away all season to date. That includes the two League Cup games as well. So I think it suits us to keep it tight early on, and then grow into the match as it progresses. Last night was a classic smash and grab really. We were second best up to the first goal and then really looked decent for a while, until late nerves crept in. All this said, we really should have had a penalty in that first half too. I’m sure VAR would have given it (for holding)
People can have their fun about Xisco looking like a kid in a sweetshop or a person who has won the lottery to manage us etc, but the simple truth is he’s come in with no experience of this league or country and has so far got 12 points out of 15, plus a competent performance away to the PL leaders. We’ve scored in every league match, something we failed to do in seven of Ivic’s 20 games in charge. Gradually things do seem to be improving. I fully appreciate this may be beginners luck, or new manager bounce. Only time will tell. But equally it might be that he was a shrewd appointment, the right type of coach and character for the time. What we needed. I’m hopeful. I appreciate too that he made himself look a bit silly with his ‘best strikers’ comment, but equally what was he meant to say in response to the question? ‘Good grief I desperately need my boss to pull his finger and wallet out because all I’ve inherited is a crock of useless ****’?. So far he’s inherited a squad in danger of falling out of play-off contention and got us right back in the mix. The smiles are returning on the field, and dare I suggest even on here too. He deserves credit for that.
Yes; but, at the risk of sounding obvious, if those players are on top of Sarr, other WFC players are left free. Yes. Definitely, if he finds himself 1:1 he must go for it. He can run like the wind and he has great skills. There are strong goal opportunities he is currently spurning. Confidence? Even in a team game there are times for selfishness.
It's complicated. We are hugely disappointed, obviously, but still, in the long term it's good to see Watford do well, even if it is with mental owners, a joke of a manager and a fat blow hard up front.
Actually it was very clever, instructions were followed to a T, play as best as you can, lose by the slimmest of margins, I want you for our league marathon, not getting thrashed at Wembley!
We should have had 3 penalties last night: The Masina thrown to the ground one. The one that was given. Pedro was also thrown to the ground in the second half. These were not marginal. The refereeing (linesmen must also shoulder blame) was very poor last night. A lot was missed or mis-interpreted. Femenia should never have been yellow-carded, it wasn't even a foul. Challenge on Cleverly. For all their energetic pressing and their late (very good) goal, Stoke couldn't show enough class where it mattered*. Watford should have won 4-1, with Deeney on a hat-trick of penalties! *Perhaps I exempt Obi Mikel from that - he ran the show for Stoke in the first half, particularly. Stoke have been a dirty physical side the last several times I've seen them.
Yes. Agreed. I would not be averse to him doing a Bielsa and answering much more fully and accurately through a Spanish interpreter. His English is really very limited. Pochettino also did this for quite a while.
We do seem to be getting a lot of penalties, but the crazy thing is I can think of plenty of other incidents where we should have got one which wasn't given!
I think yesterday's result was a "penny dropping" moment for our season. Ok, it could be a false dawn, as so many results turn out to be or it could actually mean something. It's the first time we've won three games in a row since that amazing start to the Gracia season in the Prem (4 wins). Stoke is a tough match, under floodlights. We came through it, not convincing, but we finally showed our quality in key moments. It's things like this that make players believe. They work a little harder as they can see the result might actually mean something. The way Deeney was charging around in the final minutes showed that. I'm so pleased he put in that kind of performance as it inspires those around him to work that little bit harder. Was last night a good performance? Not really, but it was solid and we had a little purple patch where we scored our goals. We had enough about us to see the game out and wins like this will (hopefully) inspire players into thinking this really could be a promotion season. They have something to chase and fight for. For me, last night could be the pivotal moment where players really start to believe, and the guy that is restoring that is Munoz.
To be fair it’d been less than 52 games since he’d had a good game, he played well during the early part of Pearson’s reign at least and he has been less than fully fit much of the last 16 months. He is a bit of an enigma though - often it seems he holds the team back if we play but then we lose something as a team if he doesn’t (last few games of 2018/19 for instance). Since 2015/16 there has been many an occasion when we think he’s outlived his purpose only for him to turn out a real team performance or few to show he still has something vital to offer. I’m still not sure who’s the real Troy...
No, actually we won three in a row as well under Pearson: Aston Villa (h) 3-0 Wolves (h) 2-1 Bournemouth (a) 3-0 I’ve mentioned before that that sequence and the one you mentioned before this game were the only times since 2014-15 we’ve managed to string more than two wins together. The above set of results is significant because it showed what Pearson could do with a full strength team, it was more than just the new manager effect for me. Once we lost our ability to string wins together (or “mojo”) we lost our confidence which has largely carried on into this season, but we have maintained a high position because the opposition has been much poorer. Let’s hope last night signals a restoration of confidence and a long run of good form.
Yes, my bad - I mentioned that sequence in place of instead of in addition to the winning start to 2018-19, so it was actually three times we’d won 3+ in a row since 2014-15. Still pretty poor, so last night’s result was timely.
Ah yes.....I overlooked that because we drew to Tranmere in the Cup during that run, but you're quite right. We we're actually just a penalty kick away from 4 league wins on the spin after Troy missed a late penalty against Spurs in a 0-0 draw.
Well if you’re talking about games in all competitions we did win three in a row again in 2018/19, winning at QPR in the FA Cup between beating Everton at home and thrashing Cardiff away.
The team is now proving they're up for the fight. Another excellent 3 points. Deeney now proving his doubters wrong (including myself) his work rate was fantastic. Also, the ref had a stinker
Errr.... what? He's was taken to the cleaners by Sarr when he was playing for Luton earlier this season, should've given away two penalties yesterday and been booked, seems like a chippy little **** too.
watching the highlights again that second half foul on Pedro where no foul or penalty was given was shockingly poor officiating, just awful. and that foul of Cleverly, should have been a red without question.
In some ways it’s better to play the teams in and around us (apart from the scum) as it gives you a real opportunity to make up a points gap or extend a gap. On the flip side that is one tough looking run
