More games from 18th October at https://oldwatford.com/tag/oct18/
6th October 2018- Premier League, Watford 0 AFC Bournemouth 4
Bad day for 10-man Watford as they suffer heavy Bournemouth defeat
Watford vs AFC Bournemouth: Eddie Howe felt Christian Kabasele’s two yellow cards was ‘right call’
Javi Gracia admits it was a ‘bad day’ for Watford in Bournemouth defeat
Watford vs AFC Bournemouth: Christian Kabasele red card put Cherries in control, says Joshua King
Watford vs AFC Bournemouth player ratings: Defenders disappoint in desperate Premier League loss
Pictures from Watford’s heavy Bournemouth defeat
David Brooks opened the scoring for the Cherries before Joshua King converted from the spot after being brought down by Christian Kabasele, who was sent off for a second bookable offence.
The result moves Bournemouth up to fifth in the Premier League after back-to-back wins, while Watford drop to eighth after failing to register a victory in their last four games.
Javi Gracia said Watford must now get down to work to ensure no repeat of their hefty defeat. “It has been the first game where we hadn’t competed at the same level as other games,” the Watford manager said. “Today we have conceded more chances, we’ve made more mistakes than in all the other games put together.”
the first 14 minutes were OK… Bournemouth dropped deep and invited us into congested areas, but we did an encouraging enough job having accepted said invitation. This culminated in Andre Gray’s shot being blocked as he span away on the right hand side of the area, and shortly afterwards the cumulative attritional effect of a series of attacks peeled open a space for Will Hughes to have a go. It was a relatively comfortable ask for Begović, who held the ball down to his right, but as an opening salvo it was perfectly acceptable.
You spend your whole week working, looking forward to the football at the weekend. Then it comes around and you end up sitting out in the rain, watching your team go down to ten men in the first half and end up losing 4-0 at home to Bournemouth.
29th September 2018- Premier League, Arsenal 2 Watford 0
Match Report: Arsenal 2-0 Watford
Doucouré: “We Created Chances But Didn’t Score”
Gracia: “I Want My Players To Receive The Recognition They Deserve”
Highlights: Arsenal 2-0 Watford
Navarro: “It Was A Dream, Now It Is Reality”
Relive as Watford lose out to late Arsenal double strike
A Craig Cathcart own goal and a Mesut Ozil strike secure Arsenal 2-0 win over Watford
Javi Gracia praises Watford’s performance in Arsenal defeat
Watford player ratings: Christian Kabasele impresses in Arsenal defeat
PICTURES: Images from Watford’s defeat to Arsenal
Will Hughes rues Watford’s inability to take their chances following Arsenal loss
Watford had played well but, after their flawless start, have slipped to a four-match winless sequence that has included three narrow defeats. “I’m very upset for my players – I think we deserved a better result,” said their manager Javi Gracia. “It was a very good performance – more shots than Arsenal and lots of clear chances – I’m very proud of my players.”
Seven successive wins is a helpful statistic, but Emery was as impressed to see how Arsenal mastered their most difficult test since the first week of the season – when they lost to Manchester City and Chelsea. This was a true test of their mettle, with Watford starting the day ahead of them in the table thanks to their well‑organised ambition, and threatening to take all the points until Arsenal scored twice in three high-energy minutes in the late summer sun.
It’s an indicator of how far our feet are under the table that this is all so familiar now. Four of the five visits to the Emirates since promotion and the environs are now as familiar as Borough Market pre-Millwall, as the cricket club at Turf Moor, as the discarded bin bags spewing their contents all over the pavements between Norwood Junction and Selhurst Park.
It was a cruel finish to the game. Watford had been the better side for most of the second half and had considerably more shots on goal, but the hosts made the most of those that they had and it was the finishing that proved the difference between the teams.
Despite the defeat, the atmosphere in the away end after the final whistle was not that of animosity, in fact quite the opposite. Watford were still the louder set of supporters in the stadium, everyone evidently realising and appreciating the effort the team put in. And that’s all we ask for as fans, certainly as supporters of a club like Watford anyway. We don’t expect to turn up at a place like Arsenal and turn them over, we don’t really expect much in all honesty. What we do expect though is effort, a sense that the players care as much as we do about the badge that’s on their chest. And we got that, in fact we’ve been getting that since the season started.
26th September 2018- League Cup Third Round, Tottenham Hotspur 2 Watford 2 (Tottenham won 4-2 on penalties) at Stadium MK
The game was played at Stadium MK as Tottenham’s new stadium was still not ready to be used and their temporary home, Wembley Stadium, was unavailable as it had hosted an Anthony Joshua title fight the previous weekend.
Referee: Lee Mason Attendance: 23,650
clips of Jon Marks BBC 3CR commentary Goals:1 2
Match Report: Tottenham Hotspur 2-2 Watford [4-2 On Pens]
Gracia: “I Am Very Proud Of All Of Them”
Success: “We Fought Really Hard To The End”
Highlights: Tottenham 2-2 Watford [4-2 On Pens]
Wilmot: “It Gives You That Bit More Desire To Start”
Watford knocked out of Carabao Cup by Tottenham Hotspur on penalties after 2-2 draw
Tottenham Hotspur vs Watford: Isaac Success takes pride in Carabao Cup defeat
Watford: Javi Gracia delighted with squad players despite Tottenham Hotspur loss
Isaac Success put Watford ahead, goals from Alli and Erik Lamela made it 2-1 before Etienne Capoue equalised.
If you want my personal opinion on playing at a neutral venue, I thought it was an absolute farce and makes a mockery of the whole competition. If you are entering a cup competition and you know full well you will not be able to fulfill a fixture, you either agree to reverse it and play away from home, or you don’t enter the competition at all.
22nd September 2018- Premier League, Fulham 1 Watford 1
Referee:Martin Atkinson Attendance:23,418
clips of Jon Marks BBC 3CR commentary Goals: 1
Match Report: Fulham 1-1 Watford
Gracia: “I Am Proud Of The Work We Have Done”
Highlights: Fulham 1-1 Watford
Deeney: “We Needed To Kill The Game”
Foster: “Both Of Them Work So Hard”
RELIVE – Fulham vs Watford: Andre Gray and Aleksandar Mitrovic on target in Premier League draw
Watford unable to build on Andre Gray’s goal in Fulham draw
Slavisa Jokanovic praises Fulham’s attitude and character after Watford draw
Fulham vs Watford: Javi Gracia admits Watford could have killed the game in the first half
PICTURES: Watford forced to settle for point at Fulham
Ben Foster: Watford made to pay for poor finishing in Fulham draw
Watford’s Troy Deeney critical of failure to make dominance pay against Fulham
The home side were lucky to go in at the break only one goal down after Christian Kabasele and Gray spurned presentable openings, while it could have been even worse had referee Martin Atkinson sent off Timothy Fosu-Mensah for a studs-up tackle on Troy Deeney just past the half-hour mark.
Watford’s captain now appears likely to be Gracia’s first enforced change of the season, having left Craven Cottage with his right leg in a protective boot and revealed he will require an X-ray after Fosu-Mensah’s 32nd-minute tackle. “I may have a broken bone or two but we crack on,” Deeney said. He had still completed the 90 minutes. “I am a tough, ugly boy so it will be all right.”
So, for the second week running, we came away disappointed at the result. I think we would all have taken a point before the game, but our first half performance was such that we should have been further ahead at half-time and, had that happened, it seemed unlikely that the home side would have been able to recover. Instead, Fulham were still in the game at the break and Jokanović made changes that strengthened his team, who pressed harder against the Hornets who then misplaced more passes and allowed the home side to threaten more.
I like Fulham. As I only live a short distance away I was able to go to several of their games last season. I find Craven Cottage a ‘proper’ football ground and have always felt like it’s a welcoming stadium to visit. The significance of our trip this time round was of course that it was the first time former Watford Head Coach, Slavisa Jokanovic had come up against us, since he got us promoted back in 2015. Of course, he received a warm reception from the travelling Hornets and was full of praise for the supporters in his pre-match press conference.
15th September 2018- Premier League, Watford 1 Manchester United 2
Referee:Mike Dean Attendance:20,537
Match Report: Watford 1-2 Manchester United
Cathcart: “We Deserved To Come Out With Something”
Gracia: “We Tried Until The End”
Highlights: Watford 1-2 Manchester United
Foster: “We Can Hold Our Heads High”
Gallery: Watford v Manchester United
clips of Jon Marks BBC 3CR commentary Goals: 1
RELIVE – Watford vs Manchester United: Romelu Lukaku and Chris Smalling strikes down Hornets
Watford’s perfect start to the season ends with Manchester United defeat
Jose Mourinho ‘very happy with the points’ after Manchester United beat Watford
Javi Gracia reflects on Watford’s defeat to Manchester United
PICTURES: A selection of images as Watford fall to narrow Manchester United loss
Manchester United boss Jose Mourinho said Romelu Lukaku epitomised his team’s performance as they withstood a spirited fightback from Watford to claim back-to-back victories and condemn the Hornets to a first loss of the season.
Watford’s qualities showed their flying start to the season has been no fluke. Their state of blissful cohesion – so in the groove Javi Gracia has not felt the need to tinker with their starting XI at all so far – created a feelgood factor that was tangible.
A play in three acts, this. The Hornets lined up in the now conventional eleven; United kicking towards the Rookery in an alternative kit of nondescript colour which looked, as Cathal later observed, like it might be inside out.
It was a day to remember absent friends as it would have been GT’s 74th birthday and Toddy’s anniversary is this week. While there was little expectation that our 100% record would continue, we had to hope that the lads would still do them both proud.
