Watford failed to beat Southampton away from home in the Sky Bet Championship with a goal from debutant Cyle Larin settling the scoreline on the south coast.
The Hornets impressed the away supporters in the first half. There were plenty of encouraging signs that the win was there for taking.
Firstly, a squandered chance by Congolese midfielder Edo Kayembe seen straight into the defender after one too many touches in what was a good area showed the motivation of the team.
Namphalays Mendy once again showing his brilliance in the midfield pack in that first half at St Mary’s with control on the ball and bags of composure.
However, the breakthrough could not be broken in the first half as both teams struggled to break each-other down.
High-press football from Watford was not rewarded with that all important goal.
No changes were made at the half by Charlie Daniels’ side in the hope for consistency and stability on the back of a strong first half.
It was a strong start to the second half on the south coast but an injury to Stephen Mfuni and the introduction of Saba Goglichidze proved to the difference between the sides.
The number one rule of football was also broken due to the arguable naivety of Watford’s interim head coach: “Never make a substitution on a corner, especially in the center back role as they will play a big part into the marking of said set piece.“
Despite this, it was a fantastic performance overall from the center-back pairing of James Abankwah and Stephen Mfuni.
They were praised very highly by the Watford contingent, most notably on Watford FC’s post match phone in on “Do Not Scratch Your Eyes.”
Speaking after the game, Daniels stated: “Fatigue crept in after good performance.“
Daniels also alluded to the “way we work compared to the previous management.”
The Watford boss continued: “subs at set-pieces is something we never want but Mfuni couldn’t continue.”
Fans took to X to express their views after the game, as can be seen above.
Whilst defensive substitutes and management played a role in the defeat, they can be identified as improvement markers for next week’s fixture against Preston North End.
