Sachin Nakrani’s match report has landed, so I’ll leave you with that. Thanks for your company - goodnight.
Jurgen Klopp shakes hands with all the Watford players before leaving the field. You’d have to be desperately one-eyed to begrudge Watford that victory. They were the better team throughout and got their rewards in the second half. Ismaila Sarr scored two quickfire goals, the second a beauty, and set up the third for Troy Deeney.
Liverpool’s winning run ends at a record-equalling 18 games, and their unbeaten run at 44. They are still going to win the league at a canter, and that’s all that really matters. The real significance of this result is at the bottom, where Watford jump out of the relegation places. They were simply brilliant, with and without the ball, and look far too something to go down.
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Full time: Watford 3-0 Liverpool
Peep peep! Watford complete a slightly surreal but thoroughly deserved victory over Liverpool. Three-nil!
90+1 min Four minutes of added time. Liverpool are about to lose a Premier League game for the first time in 422 days.
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90 min It’s just one defeat, let’s not over-reac- oh. “I’ll be surprised if Lovren ever plays another game for Liverpool,” says Rolf Wilhelm. “Milner is a much better option for centre-back, or any of the kids.”
89 min van Dijk wafts a shot over the bar from 30 yards. Before play resumes, the excellent Abdoulaye Doucoure - who made the first goal - is replaced by NathanIel Chalobah.
88 min “Hey Rob,” says J.R. in Illinois. “It’s very unfair for Liverpool’s undefeated season to end this way. I mean, to make the players wear 40-pound costumes as they walked out onto the field has obviously fatigued them something terrible.”
86 min Watford’s fans are getting greedy: they are now desperate not just for victory but also a clean sheet. Whatever happens in the last few minutes, they’ll talk about this night forever.
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85 min Jordan Henderson has been Liverpool’s player of the match.
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84 min Robertson, the only Liverpool outfield player who has performed to his usual standard, picks out Lallana. His shot is blocked.
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83 min Had Sarr scored it would have gone to VAR for a possible offside. It was very tight, not that it matters now.
82 min Sarr misses a brilliant chance to score a legendary hat-trick! He was put through by Capoue and curled just wide of the far post. It’s his last touch: he leaves the field to a standing ovation, and a brollocking for Alexander-Arnold for not rushing straight off the field. Ignacio Pussetto replaces him.
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80 min A 3-0 win would take Watford out of the relegation zone, ahead of Bournemouth on goal difference. It’s deliciously tight down there.
79 min Liverpool make their last change, with Roberto Firmino replaced by Takumi Minamino.
77 min Watford have been fantastic tonight. There has been so much to admire: the work rate, spirit, defensive organisation and most of all their controlled, purposeful attacking.
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76 min Mane gets away with a little kick at Masina, who had shepherded the ball out of play.
75 min “Troy Deeney,” says Graham Fulcher, “is an Arsenal legend. I never thought I would write that and be happy about it.”
Even Nigel Pearson is shaking his head in disbelief. Alexander-Arnold’s short backpass was intercepted by Sarr, who went round Alisson. The angle was too tight so he turned back, looked up and fed Deeney, who sidefooted the ball calmly over the head of van Dijk on the line.
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GOAL! Watford 3-0 Liverpool (Deeney 72)
I say. It’s Watford 3 (THREE), Liverpool 0 (NIL)!
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72 min It’s all Liverpool now, although Watford’s defensive organisation remains very impressive.
71 min Liverpool are now playing 4-2-4: Origi left, Mane right, Salah and Firmino up front.
70 min “As all any Arsenal have now is our past,” says Andrew Hurley, “here’s hoping Watford can preserve our two unbeaten records!”
69 min Liverpool are starting to put Watford under serious pressure for the first time in the match. Alexander-Arnold’s whipped free-kick from the right is headed away by Cathcart.
66 min: Lallana hits the post! It was a beautiful effort. A headed clearance came to him 25 yards out, left of centre; he chested the ball down, waited for it to bounce and cut across a left-footed shot that hit the outside of the far post. Foster was beaten.
65 min Divock Origi replaces the disappointing Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain.
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64 min Almost a third goal! After a lazy Liverpool clearance, Hughes’s first-time shot hits his team-mate Sarr in the six-yard box. That might have been going in.
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61 min Adam Lallana comes on to replace Wijnaldum.
That was a lovely finish. Deeney, on halfway by the right touchline, curled a speculative pass around the defence, and all of a sudden Sarr was away. He had too much pace for van Dijk and Lovren and was calm enough to flip the ball gently over the outrushing Alisson. What a fine goal.
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GOAL! Watford 2-0 Liverpool (Sarr 60)
Ismaila Sarr gets his second!
58 min Robertson’s excellent cross into the six-yard box is put behind by Cathcart. Liverpool have an affronted look on their collective coupon, which is possibly bad news for Watford.
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56 min It’s probably no coincidence that Ismaila Sarr has been injured for most of Watford’s poor recent run. He was brilliant during their excellent start under Nigel Pearson, and has been a pain in Liverpool’s derriere tonight.
It came from a long throw on the left. Deeney allowed it to bounce through to Doucoure, who chested it down on the run and knocked the ball across the six-yard box. Sarr reacted quickest, getting in front of Robertson to poke the ball into the net.
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GOAL! Watford 1-0 Liverpool (Sarr 54)
Watford take the lead!
53 min Liverpool have their first shot on target. Van Dijk slides an excellent pass down the inside-left channel to Robertson, whose shot is beaten away at the near post by Foster.
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52 min Liverpool have attacked with greater urgency since half-time.
50 min As you were: the full-backs have returned to their usual positions. Bit weird.
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49 min Salah’s long-range shot is headed away by Kabasele.
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47 min Liverpool have switched their full-backs at half-time, with Robertson on the right and Alexander-Arnold on the left. Very interesting.
46 min Sarr forces a save from Alisson in the first minute of the second half. Pereyra played a nice through ball to Sarr, who took the shot first time from the edge of the D. It was well struck but straight at Alisson, who pushed it over the bar.
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46 min Peep peep!
Liverpool were out early for the second half, which hints at a not inconsiderable brollocking from Jurgen Klopp.
“Sorry if you’ve been deluged with emails saying we (LFC) are missing Hendo,” says Simon Breed. “But boy are we missing Hendo’s drive and follow ups...”
Half-time reading
Half time: Watford 0-0 Liverpool
Peep peep! No goals, and no shots on target until that Deeney opportunity a moment ago. A sluggish Liverpool haven’t really troubled a resilient Watford defence, and the only other incident of note was a nasty-looking knee injury to Gerard Deulofeu. See you in 15 minutes for the second half.
45+5 min Deeney was being wrestled by Lovren in the penalty area just before that chance, but Michael Oliver and VAR weren’t interested. That could easily have been given.
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45+5 min Deeney misses an excellent chance! Alisson dropped a bouncing ball at the feet of Deeney, who turned and chipped towards goal. Alisson recovered to save, and Deeney’s follow-up was shepherded wide by van Dijk.
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45 min Five added minutes because of the Deulofeu injury.
44 min Wijnaldum reacts aggressively after a foul from Hughes. It looked a bit of a snide one from Hughes, so you can understand why Wijnaldum was so hacked off.
43 min After a confident run, Sarr shoots high over from the edge of the box.
43 min “A grim XI there, Millings,” says Matt Dony. “Presumably, Troy ‘Dead’ Parrott was left out on account of the fact that he may not actually exist beyond the fevered imagination of Spurs fans and journalists.”
42 min Deeney is lucky not to be booked for a late tackle on Alexander-Arnold.
41 min This performance isn’t going to do much for Liverpool’s xG.
38 min “I think Liverpool are running on fumes at the moment,” says Rick Harris. “ They know they’ve won the league so in the players’ minds there is less mental urgency than was there earlier in the season. They’ve come close to defeat recently against teams in the relegation battle or mid-table and seemed to find it very hard to raise their game after the winter break in the CL against Atletico. I think neutral and Liverpool fans are hoping they can eclipse the Invincibles and stay unbeaten the whole season, but they could just get unlucky.”
37 min Deulofeu is finally stretchered off, with Pereyra replacing him.
34 min Roberto Pereyra is getting ready to replace Deulofeu, who is going to be stretchered off. The poor bloke is in all sorts of distress.
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32 min Deulofeu is down, holding his knee, after being eased to the floor by van Dijk. No foul was given, but Michael Oliver stopped play when he realised that Deulofeu was in a lot of pain. His foot got stuck as he fell and he twisted his knee. This doesn’t look good.
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29 min Wijnaldum, facing his own goal, hacks the ball clear under pressure from Doucoure. Watford continue to make life difficult for Liverpool, which will make their eventual defeat all the more frustrating.
27 min “Is it just me or does Klopp overplay his front three?” says Zafar Sobhan. “He does such a good job of rotating elsewhere; his overuse of his forward line is baffling to me. It won’t matter this year - except maybe in Europe - but in past years they have been susceptible to injury and fatigue in the run in.”
I used to think that as well, but it doesn’t seem to do much harm. They seem immune to fatigue.
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24 min Nothing much to report. Watford have done pretty well so far, and have certainly had the better opportunities.
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20 min A Liverpool corner is half-cleared to Oxlade-Chamberlain. He lifts a speculative pass over the outrushing defence that eventually reaches Salah, and he spanks a right-footed half-volley into the side netting. It was a pretty difficult chance.
18 min Lovren hammers a brilliant crossfield pass to Robertson, who tries to run Sarr inside the area and is doggedly dispossessed.
18 min Oxlade-Chamberlain’s pass towards Robertson goes straight out of play. Liverpool are not on their game, at least not yet.
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16 min Nothing happens from the corner.
15 min Deulofeu plays a one-two with Deeney and picks out an excellent cutback to Doucoure, whose first-time shot is blocked almost disdainfully by van Dijk. Corner to Watford.
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14 min Watford are playing like the away side, allowing Liverpool to have the ball and then springing forward in numbers when they win it. Liverpool’s passing has been a bit slow by their standards.
12 min “I take it Mac Millings’ Death XI play their home matches at Croak Park?” says Peter Oh. “And there’s no room in the squad for Virgil Van Dijd, Jordan Enderson, and No Mo’ Salah?”
Well this is cheery. No Mo!
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11 min Wijnaldum is this close to being robbed by Hughes in his own area. Watford are a threat going forward.
10 min A much better effort from Deulofeu. He runs at Alexander-Arnold on the edge of the box, cuts inside and whips a curling shot towards the far corner that goes just over the bar. I’m not sure Alisson had that one covered.
8 min “Sitting in theology seminar reading MBM, hoping not to be caught,” writes YOU THERE I KNOW YOU’RE READING THE MBM ARE MY SEMINARS THAT BLOODY BORING. “But I don’t think the Reds need a prayer from me to spank Watford, god bless their yellow hearts. Onward Liverpool!!”
I think this will be a tough game for Liverpool, and they’ll win 3-1.
7 min Liverpool enjoy an extended spell of possession. Eventually Alexander-Arnold lofts an excellent pass to Oxlade-Chamberlain on the right side of the box. He is held up but returns the ball to Alexander-Arnold, whose cross goes out of play. I think he was pushed but nothing was given.
5 min Deulofeu cuts infield from the left and hit a low shot that goes a few yards wide of the near post. Alisson had it covered.
4 min A quiet start. Has Jurgen Klopp taken Liverpool as far as he can?
1 min Peep peep! Liverpool kick off from left to right as I watch. They are in red; Watford are sporting yellow.
Young Watford fan sat in front of the press box literally jumped out of his seat and punched the air when it was announced Dejan Lovren is starting for Liverpool today.
— Sachin Nakrani (@SachinNakrani) February 29, 2020
The players emerge from the tunnel on a chilly evening in Watford. Let’s watch some football.
“I don’t want to bore you with my whole train of thought,” says Mac Millings. “But I was going to do a Leap Year XI, and then the afternoon results came in, and Watford are playing Liverpool, and I ended up doing a Death one instead. Don’t worry, I’m fine, and everything is going to be fine:
- Pepe Reinacarnation
- Johnny Heavens
- Cemeterry Butcher
- Robert Huthanasia
- Gunnar Valhalle
- Death Johnson
- Johnny Met God
- Djibril Decissé
- St. Peter Crouch
- Purgatore André Flo
- Luis Boa Mortality.
Johnny Met God. Yeah, I like that.
If Liverpool win tonight, they will set a new record for consecutive victories in the top flight: 19.
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Pre-match reading
Team news
Watford (4-2-3-1) Foster; Kiko Femenia, Kabasele, Cathcart, Masina; Hughes, Capoue; Sarr, Doucoure, Deulofeu; Deeney.
Substitutes: Gomes, Dawson, Chalobah, Pussetto, Pereyra, Welbeck, Gray.
Liverpool (4-3-3) Alisson; Alexander-Arnold, Lovren, van Dijk, Robertson; Oxlade-Chamberlain, Fabinho, Wijnaldum; Salah, Firmino, Mane.
Substitutes: Adrian, Matip, Hoever, Lallana, Jones, Minamino, Origi.
Referee Michael Oliver.
Preamble
Hello and welcome to live coverage of Watford v Liverpool from Vicarage Road. Even allowing for the received wisdom that football is a funny old game, it would be seriously bizarre if Liverpool were denied their first title for 30 years because of a pandemic.
If the coronavirus does not end the season early, Liverpool need 12 points from their last 11 games to clinch their first Premier League title. They could still do it at Everton on 16 March, the third of those 11 games, should Manchester City drop points in the meantime. For the time being, their focus is on beating Watford and extending their lead to 25 points. Yawn, meh, 25 points.
Hang on, 25 points?! I’m not sure Liverpool are getting enough credit. You might not like them, you might think the Premier League is a bit naff, you might be sick of the sight of Jurgen Klopp’s teeth, but come on: they’ve won 35 of their last 36 league games FFS! That has never happened before in Europe’s biggest leagues. In fact, their record this season - P27 W26 D1 L0 - belongs in Sunday League football.
There is one difference. A team with 26 wins from 27 in Sunday League football would have a goal difference of around +200. Liverpool’s is a mere +47, and 13 of their 26 victories this season have been by a single goal – many of them requiring late winners. That might be the reason for the slightly muted response to win after win after win; it feels like Manchester City received more effusive praise two years ago when they regularly thumped teams by four or five.
I also think there’s an element of everyone - even Liverpool fans - struggling to get their head around such unprecedented threepointery. Or maybe the world is full of Expected Goals disciples. Liverpool are second in the xG table, although an Expected Win tonight will move them within two Expected Points of Manchester City.
I’d argue that Liverpool having to work so hard for many wius actually enhances rather than diminishes their achievement. The soundbites may be cheesy but they’re also true: Liverpool are mentality monsters, the toughest in English football for a long while.
Watford played well in a 2-0 defeat at Anfield in December, so you never know what might happen tonight. But 106 points from the last 108 available should give you a pretty good idea.
Kick off is at 5.30pm.
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