Newcastle United 0-3 Watford

After an impressive win against West Ham last week, I headed up to the North East in high spirits albeit slightly hungover! I'd only visited St James' Park once back in 2015 when The Hornets came away with a 2-1 win, in what was a really enjoyable away day so this was one of the first fixtures I looked for back in June.

So to yesterday, after making the long trip up on the train, I realised how under prepared I was the bitterly cold north! After meeting up with some friends who study in Newcastle they confirmed that it is always freezing up there so my moaning fell on death ears.

After a few pre match beers, it was time to embark on the mission of getting to the away end, which if you haven't visited Newcastle before is way up high on level 7. A mammoth 14 flights of stairs later and eventually we had arrived in the away end and found our seats. A lot of people have criticised the fact of where the away end is situated at Newcastle but personally I feel its part of the experience of visiting St James's and the view of the action is superb.

Both teams made a positive start to the game looking to gain a first goal to get a foothold in the match. It led to a particularly open and end to end game but I always felt The Hornets were in control and would take the lead. It only took 19 minutes for the visitors to find the opener, as Kabasele played a superb pass to set away Zeegelaar who found Will Hughes and he made no mistake with the finish. It's the English midfielders second goal in as many games and he is really finding his feet in the Premier League, having a real effect on the team.

The Golden Boys should've been two ahead minutes after the opener, when Zeegelaar again crossed this time for Doucoure but the Frenchman could only divert his effort wide. Up the other end Gomes did well to deny Joselu to keep The Hornets ahead and it came as a reminder that the hosts were very much in the game. For long periods of the opening 45 minutes The Hornets couldn't play their usual football and gave the ball back to The Magpies on many occasions, albeit the hosts failed to make many clear cut chances when they did have the ball.

Despite not being at their best The Hornets went in at the break two ahead, the magnificent Zeegelaar was again involved, as his cross deflected straight into the net off DeAndre Yedlin sending 2000 Watford fans into raptures high up in the Newcastle sky. At half time I had the 'Mag Pie"(Beef and onion) and I have to say its the worst pie I've ever had at a football ground, it was like Newcastles backline... Awful!

Onto to the second half where The Hornets instantly looked for a third goal which would all but kill the game off. Andre Gray had a golden chance as he raced through on goal one-on-one but his attempt was pretty miserable as it harmlessly went wide, when he should've done much better.

Gray did get his goal and he wrapped up the three points for Watford in the process. Richardson raced away on the left hand side before beautifully sending in a curling cross for Gray who stretched to send it home. This led to a mass exit from the 50,000 Newcastle fans, nothing better than the "Pygmies" rocking up and beating the giants in their own back yard. Again.

Gomes made a couple of saves late on to keep back to back clean sheets and on the whole it was largely another gritty team performance which led to a deserved 3 points. Were The Hornets at their best? I'd say not but that leaves a lot of optimism to see what the complete article is like when they do play at their best.

It's two very tough games to come this week as we host Manchester United on Tuesday then Spurs next Saturday where largely the pressure is off. If we can get anything from those games then its a massive achievement and there's no reason we can't. Yes it'll be tough but with the confidence in this side at the moment and the belief amongst the squad if anyone is capable The Hornets are.

Roll on December...

You 'Orns

Newcastle 0-3 Watford

Man Of The Match: Will Hughes (cases could made for a few players)

Away day rating 9/10- Great City, great stadium, terrible pie!

Match rating: 7/10

Next Fixture: Manchester United (H)

Watford 2-0 West Ham

Watford ended a three game losing run as they defeated West Ham on David Moyes’ first game in charge of The Hammers.

Goals from Will Hughes and Richarlison gave The Hornets all three points as they moved up to eight in the Premier League. In a week of uncertainty off the field, Watford most certainly did their talking on the pitch.

Watford took the lead after 10 minutes as Marvin Zeegelaar’s cross was eventually turned home by Hughes following Andre Gray’s miss kick. It was the midfielders first Hornets goal after moving from Derby County in the summer.

Watford had much the better of the opening 30 minutes and nearly doubled their when Joe Hart parried out Richarlison’s shot and Kiko Femenia drove the rebound narrowly wide of the left hand post.

West Ham nearly equalised just before the break after a fantastic passing move found Cheikhou Kouyate through on goal but Heurelho Gomes saved superbly to keep his side in front.

Gomes was the hero again as he made a superb double save from Marco Arnautovic, the Austrian headed powerfully down towards goal which the Brazilian got down to save before he got up to deny the midfielders rebound.

The Hammers should have been level just after the restart, as Arnautovic cut it back for Kouyate who blazed it over from 6 yards out. Up the other end Abdoulaye Doucoure nearly put his side two ahead but his shot whistled past Joe Hart’s post.  

Joe Hart made an outstanding save from point blank range as he clawed out Adrian Mariappa’s goal bound header. Disbelief amongst the home faithful as to just how the England international denied The Hornets a second.

The Hornets pressure paid as they soon got that elusive second goal as Hughes set away Richarlison who made no mistake with the finish for his 5^th Premier League goal of the season.

West Ham came within millimetres of pulling a goal back as Manuel Lanzini’s shot was brilliantly blocked by Christian Kabasele. The Belgian covered the corner of the goal and through himself at it superbly.

The result means The Hammers remain in the relegation zone and without an away win since May. They host Leicester at the London Stadium next for Moyes’ first home match.

The Hornets will be hoping that Marco Silva is still in the dugout for the trip to Newcastle next Saturday following speculation he will fill the vacant Everton job.

Man of the match: Will Hughes  

Attendance: 20,018

Watford 2-1 Arsenal

Watford 2-1 Arsenal is a scoreline we're getting used to in recent years! Here's my take on a special special night at Vicarage Road.

The thing I love about football is the fact that for 90 minutes each week, nothing else matters. The collective roar of the crowd as they urge their team onto 3 points. Yesterday's second half had all the these things that made me fall in love with the sport when I attended my first game as an 8 year old.

1-0 down at the break against one of the best teams in the country and the current FA Cup holders, things were looking bleak for The Hornets at half time. The first half had been flat on and off the pitch, as Marco Silva's men adapted to a new formation and tried to keep themselves in the game as Arsenal pressed. Eventually Per Mertesacker headed home from a corner to give the visitors the lead. In fairness the visitors weren't at their best themselves but they did have the majority of the game and in the end a halftime scoreline of 1-0 was fair on The Gunners.

However the second half was a completely different story, a new found belief swept around Vicarage Road, it was like everyone from a Watford persuasion knew that the Golden Boys could take something from this game. Whatever Silva said at halftime certainly worked, the players looked right up for it as they took the game to Arsenal as they tried to bring themselves back into the contest. Silva changed things up shortly after the restart and brought on Troy Deeney and Andre Carrillo for Andre Gray and Aidy Mariappa, those substitutions ended up being the catalyst for The Hornets comeback.

The big teams are known for being clinical and punishing their opponents by finishing off games before a comeback can even be mounted. Arsenal failed to do that yesterday as Alex Iwobi saw his shot impressively saved by Gomes and then Mesut Ozil shot straight at the Brazilian when he was clean through on goal. In football when you don't take your chances you are usually punished and it was no different for the visitors last night. Just 60 seconds after Ozil missed that golden opportunity up one end, Watford had a penalty up the other as Bellerin "fouled" Richarlison. I used inverted commas around the word fouled as lets be honest it wasn't a foul, however it also wasn't a dive as there was contact, however that's a debate for another day! If the same thing happens up the other end Arsenal would expect a penalty no question about it.

Club captain Troy Deeney stepped up and converted from the spot to send the home fans into delight. The goal ramped up the noise inside Vicarage Road as all of a sudden people were sensing a famous comeback was in store for The Hornets. I go back to the roar of the crowd and that being part of my love for football, 18,500 or so Watford fans urged their team forward every time someone moved even an inch with the ball. Attack after attack followed and inside the last 10 minutes just a lick of paint denied Watford a winner, as Capoue's deflected strike struck the foot of the post.

I don't remember lots from such an emotionally charged game but I do remember saying "this would be a kick in the balls. This would be so cruel if they score" as Arsenal had a corner inside the last 5 minutes. I couldn't have even imagined the euphoria I would've felt 5 minutes later as The Hornets struck the winner leaving the travelling fans with the sickening feeling of defeat. Although lets face it they're getting used to that feeling when they play us now!

As The Hornets pushed forward one last time, Jose Holebas struck an effort towards the Arsenal net, it deflected towards Deeney who challenged Petr Cech who bravely got their first. The ball fell to Capoue who tired his luck but Mertesacker blocked, only for the ball to fall straight to Tom Cleverley who smashed the ball into the empty Rookery End net to send Vicarage Road into absolute raptures. As Cleverley struck it, time must have stood still because it felt like an age until the ball flew into the net.

Football is one of few things where you can suddenly be jumping on random people you have never met before and the only thing you have in common with them is the want for your team to succeed. Everyones emotions came spilling out as they celebrated the winner, as everyone jumped on each other, hugs galore amongst fans. Now in an age where the game is consumed by money, this is exactly what football is all about. You suffer through the hard times, for these amazing good times that you'll talk about when you grow old and look back on memories of supporting this incredible football club.

Us Watford fans have to had to go through some hard times, we nearly had our club go on the brink of administration in 2009 only for it to be saved. We had Elton John raising money for the club to sign a striker who coincidentally captains this spirited, determined and above all talented Watford side. From having to find three points from our last two games back in 2010 to survive in the championship, to being fourth in the Premier League after beating Arsenal, these are really special times at Vicarage Road. Days like yesterday need to be savoured but there is a feeling around this club at the moment that something special is being built and history is being made. There's a buzz and a excitement around the place again and being a Watford fan has never felt better, the best thing that has ever happened to me was being taken along to my first game of football against Preston North End some 12 years ago now. I love the sport and most importantly Watford Football Club continually create stories and memories that'll last a lifetime.

I bloody love football.

You 'Orns!


Watford 2-1 Arsenal

League position: 4th (Yes really!)

Man of the match: Cleverley (Deeney voted by the BT Sport guys)

Next fixture: Chelsea (A)

Ref rating- Neil Swarbrick- You're welcome back anytime. 10/10!

Watford 3-3 Liverpool

Watford 3-3 Liverpool

I said I was excited about the new season and yesterday did nothing to hamper my optimism! The Hornets shared the spoils and rightfully took a point in an entertaining draw with Jurgen Klopp’s Liverpool. The Hornets led twice thanks to goals from Stefano Okaka and Abdoulaye Doucoure, but were pegged back twice by The Reds, as Sadio Mane and Roberto Firmino found the net. Liverpool completed the turnaround through new signing Mo Salah tapping home from close range, but there was a final twist when Miguel Britos scrambled the ball over the line in injury time to level the scores.

Watford came out of the blocks the quicker and could’ve been ahead when Roberto Pereyra skilfully found his way through on goal but saw his shot blocked. However, from the resulting corner The Hornets took the lead, Okaka found himself unmarked and powerfully headed past Mingolet.

The Golden Boys felt a sense of de ja vu when Daryl Janmaat went down with an injury forcing Marco Silva into an early substitution. Debutant Kiko Feminia took his place but I can’t help but feel a sense of frustration that yet again muscular injuries keep occurring amongst this Watford team. Janmaat himself has had large spells out already with injury since his move from Newcastle, so The Hornets may need to look at recruiting another defensive back up in case we are further hampered by injuries throughout this season. It’ll be interesting to see if there is any more business before the deadline at the end of the month, for sure we can expect 2 or 3 players to move out of the club.

Liverpool levelled with a well worked move where Sadio Mane was put through on goal and he made no mistake as he slotted past Gomes into the top corner. It was a sucker punch because The Hornets looked comfortable but you cannot complain at conceding goals of that quality.

The Hornets showed their rejuvenated attitude since Silva has come in and responded immediately as Doucoure slotted home following yet another defensive mix up in The Reds back line. Liverpool 
were very much there for the taking and Watford looked dangerous every time they attacked which is a good sign going into the next set of fixtures. The score remained 2-1 at half time, meaning I couldn’t resist a half time pint! The bar team at Watford have introduced a new token scheme where you pre order your halftime drink, so you can get your pint quicker (supposedly!). Well I didn’t pre order and had my pint before my mate who had pre ordered so maybe the system needs a little work, not that I am complaining!!

So to the second half and The Hornets were dealt an early blow when Pereyra picked up an injury which forced him off, he was replaced by the Brazillian Richarlison. On the topic of Pereyra I need to add how great it was to have him back, he absolutely ran the show in the first half. He created chances for Okaka and brought others into the game something that we most definitely missed in the second half of last season. We seemed to miss him again when he went off as the whole tempo of the Golden Boys went flat, off the pitch as well as on it.

The Reds took advantage of the drop in tempo and were level 10 minutes after the break, Salah burst through before being upended by Gomes, leaving the ref with no choice but to award the spot kick. Firmino stepped up and sent Gomes the wrong way to level the scores. Soon after Liverpool killed the joyful mood around The Vic, Firmino was set through on goal, and lofted it over Gomes for Salah to tap home from little over a yard out. It sent the away end into raptures and felt like a dagger to the heart for me and the other Watford fans. Football was well and truly back, yet again The Hornets were running us through the mill.

Liverpool could’ve finished it once and for all but Matip headed against the bar and Gomes kept The Reds at bay for a 10 minute spell of domination. There’s been a lot of fans calling for a new number one at Vicarage Road but the Brazillian showed here why he will be the number one until at least January. However, I do believe he needs someone to put pressure on him because arguably he was at fault for both goals in the second half, he was caught in no man’s land for the 3^rd goal. His decision making came into question as he brought Salah down for the penalty which led to the 2^nd, although I do still think he is the man to be number one, he will keep us in games this season, not forgetting he is a central figure around the club.

When it looked like The Hornets were heading to an opening day defeat, they showed one last spell of determination to get the point they deserved. Mingolet could only palm a Britos shot, turning it around for a corner where The Hornets threw all 10 outfielders forward. A near post corner found the Brazilian Richarlison, who smashed it goal wards hitting the underside of the crossbar and the keeper but Britos was there to head home on the goal line!! The Rookery went into raptures and it was the least Watford deserved on the balance of play.

The whistle blew a minutes later and little old Watford had taken a point off Champions League Liverpool. It was a great performance for 70 minutes and if we hadn’t have lost our heads then we probably could’ve had all 3 points. Lots of positives to take down to the south coast next week, where if we play like we did yesterday (Saturday) then we have every chance of winning.

Who said the saying “football is a rollercoaster” isn’t true?

It is when you follow The Hornets! But I wouldn’t have it any other way.

Onto Bournemouth, you ‘Orns!!

Watford 3-3 Liverpool

Man of the match: Abdoulaye Doucoure- Ran the midfield and picked up a goal. The Frenchman has a big season ahead of him.

Away fans rating- 7/10- Liverpool fans were loud in spells but not as good as their reputation probably suggests.

Game rating- 10/10 – I would’ve loved it had I been a neutral

@Adzrowe on twitter.

Watford 2017/2018 Premier League season preview

Football is back! After what seems to have felt like an eternity competitive football returns to Vicarage Road as The Hornets host Liverpool in the Premier League on Saturday.

The Golden Boys have had another very busy summer off the pitch and yet another new manager will be in the hot seat at the start of the season. There is reason to be optimistic in the newest head coach Marco Silva, he very much gave a dead and buried Hull City team a chance of survival and had them playing entertaining football. Already he’s made a good impression in his short time at The Vic, the way he spoke in his opening news conference was refreshing to say the least. He is bringing in his style and looks to have a group of players who really want to thrive and compete under his headship. The fact he has the players all speaking (or learning) English on the training ground sits very well with me that he is in charge and not the players. It didn’t always seem last season that the head coach had the control over his players, arguably one of the reasons why last season was as dismal as it was. It’ll be interesting to see whether Watford’s new Portuguese coach can make Vicarage Road a fortress like he did the KCOM last season, it’ll be yet again vital that The Hornets make Hertfordshire a hard place to come.  

In terms of the playing squad there have been numerous changes yet again:

Outs: Permanent transfers

Juan Carlos Paredes – Emelec

Mario Suarez- Guizhou Hengfeng Zhicheng

Steven Berghuis –Feyenoord

Ins:

Will Hughes (Midfield) – Derby County

Kiko Femenia (Defender) – Alaves

Nathaniel Chalobah (Midfield) – Chelsea

Daniel Bachmann (Goalkeeper) - Free transfer

Andre Gray  (Striker) – Burnley (Club record fee)

Richarlison (Forward) - Fluminense

I am personally like many others excited with the business that has been done this summer so far. We have seriously strengthened the squad that finished last season, adding young talent which will significantly boost The Hornets chances of a successful season. What has been excellent is to see the change of transfer policy with so many English players being brought in (Hughes, Gray, Chalobah). Not only do they add quality to the team and they will also understand the importance of the English game in terms of having a connection with the fans something that was largely missing last season and was one of the major criticisms of former manager Walter Mazzarri. Chalobah obviously knows the club after previously spending time on loan at The Vic in 2013, I for one am thrilled to have him return because of his quality and the fact he has age on his side meaning he could become a permanent figure within the club. I for one think the Englishman could easily become the club captain in years to come, another English player Will Hughes has excelled in the championship at Derby County and has been presented with the chance to try his luck in the Premier League at Vicarage Road. I don’t think he will start as a permanent fixture in the first team and will most likely be on the bench but if he lives up to his billing he could be one of the first names on the team sheet by May. Watford’s newest recruit is Andre Gray who joined on a record fee from Burnley earlier this week, he again adds to the attacking options and has a proven Premier League scoring record after a relatively successful first season with Burnley. He can either lead the line on his own with his electric pace or he could play off the skipper Troy Deeney which could be a very exciting partnership as we know that Deeney has excelled when having someone playing off him. Richarlison’s deal came slightly out of the blue but he adds pace and flare, as well as versatility as he can play up top as well as on the wing which significantly adds to The Hornets attacking options.

The squad has outstanding depth and personally all I think we really need now is a new centre back and we look good all over the field. The competition will play a major factor in keeping the squad hungry and there really isn’t anyone guaranteed a starting place with so many quality players waiting in the wings.

My predictions:

First game: Watford 1-1 Liverpool

Final position- 13^th- a successful season where Watford are more consistent throughout the season.

Player of the season- Roberto Pereyra- The Argentinian midfielder is like a new signing for The Hornets after missing large parts of last season with injury. His flare is going to bolster The Hornets midfield and will most certainly create chances for the attacking line.  

Stay connected with my views throughout the season as I will be posting a report of each game this season. That will start Sunday following the Liverpool game.

Football is returning to WD18 and I have never been so optimistic.