Category Archives: Xisco Munoz

6th March 2021- Championship, Watford 1 Nottingham Forest 0

BBC Sport: Adam Masina’s strike earned Watford victory over Nottingham Forest as a sixth win in seven Championship games sent the Hornets second.

Sky Sports: Adam Masina scored the only goal of the game with a fizzing drive after Forest goalkeeper Brice Samba had struggled to deal with a cross from Ismaila Sarr (17) and, while Lyle Taylor had a late strike ruled out for offside, the visitors could not mark their second-half improvement with an equaliser.

BHappy: Sarr flayed Bong on the right, Samba beat Gray to his cross but the deflection fell to Masina who slammed a shot between the recovering Samba’s legs and in from the edge of the area.  The left back had been abandoned by his marker…  I was watching Hive with Jon Marks’ comms, but reports described Sky’s commentator exclaiming “Where’s Knockaert?”, for pundit Keith Andrews to reply “He’s cheating!”, two words which elevated his popularity in Hertfordshire to levels he didn’t achieve during his brief loan six or seven years ago.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/56219573

3rd March 2021- Championship, Watford 2 Wycombe Wanderers 0

BBC Sport: Andre Gray’s first brace in almost four years helped Watford beat Wycombe Wanderers in the Championship and go level on points with second-placed Brentford.

Sky Sports: Two goals from Andre Gray were enough for the Hornets, who now have an automatic promotion place in their sights following the Bees’ defeat at leaders Norwich.

BHappy: The other eye-catching addition to the eleven was Andre Gray, starting his first game for almost a month in the absence of the suspended João Pedro.  Not a given that he’d get the nod I don’t think, but fourteen minutes in he made a mockery of his meagre form this season by clinically finishing off a move that, like so many, rolled down the right wing via Kiko and the irrepressible Sarr.  No surprise, I guess, that a striker should enjoy playing in a confident attacking side creating plenty of chances more than he does the constipated Watford team that he struggled in front of for much of the season, but nonetheless.  Surprising how easy he made it look, suddenly.  In common with our best moves at the moment, particularly down that flank, we looked mercilessly precise.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/56178053

19th February 2021- Championship, Watford 2 Derby County 1

BBC Sport: Will Hughes scored against his old club as Watford beat Derby to move third and level on points with second-placed Brentford in the Championship.

Sky Sports: Watford defender William Troost-Ekong turned Nathan Byrne’s cross into his own net to reduce the deficit late on (77), before Byrne’s corner inside the final 10 minutes was kept out by a combination of the woodwork and goalkeeper Daniel Bachmann.

BHappy: Saturday’s startlingly helpful results will have buoyed Hornets’ hearts still further;  Brentford’s recent collapse in particular having looked irresistible a couple of weeks ago perhaps a warning against getting too carried but we look formidable, and at this point of the season with shallower squads than ours suffering badly we have a real opportunity.  Of our first choice eleven only perhaps Hughes and Sarr would be critical misses in isolation.  The momentum is building, the conviction and the energy that we’ve been so badly missing is there, we have the squad and we’re strong all over the pitch.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/56035702

13th February 2021- Championship, Watford 6 Bristol City 0

BBC Sport: A stunning first-half performance helped promotion-chasing Watford blow away out-of-form Bristol City at Vicarage Road in the Championship.

Sky Sports: The margin of victory was Watford’s biggest for six years and the clean sheet made it 14 shut-outs for the season.

BHappy: Everything did fall for us though.  I mean, yes, brilliant, wonderful.  6-0, biggest league win since that day in September 1982 when my sister and I spent the evening using up our felt tips on posters depicting the boat sinking on the old Sunderland badge to greet Dad when he got home (Paolo’s first game, he never had a chance….).  But, you know.  If you’re not going to record a comfortable win in these circumstances…

https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/55959619

1st February 2021- Championship, Watford 1 Queens Park Rangers 2

BBC Sport: Troy Deeney smashed home from the penalty spot to put the hosts ahead early in the second half after Ismaila Sarr was brought down by Geoff Cameron.

Sky Sports: From the first whistle, a neutral viewer would have found it hard to distinguish which side was vying for promotion to the Premier League and which was just four points above the relegation zone, such was QPR’s dominance of the ball.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/55791569

19th January 2021- Championship, Watford 1 Barnsley 0

BBC Sport: Troy Deeney’s first-half penalty was enough for Watford to beat Barnsley and move up to third in the Championship.

Sky Sports: Callum Brittain’s bizarre decision to stick out an arm when Deeney crossed in the 26th minute ended up costing Barnsley. The ball reared up off his leg but Brittain’s right arm was in such an un-natural position that referee Tim Robinson had no hesitation in pointing to the spot.

BHappy: We were fifth before today’s game, third afterwards.  Tiny violins and so forth.  But it’s been so long since we attacked with any verve that even this halfway house, this decent stab at it was a whole lot of fun.  We might have scored more goals at home than anyone else (and fewer away than anyone else, which is a ridiculous pair of statistics) but it hasn’t felt like it.  This was….   “yeeeeah, I remember this!  This used to be fun, right?”.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/55627724