Match report
Full time: Watford 1-1 West Ham
What an end to the game! Cleverley’s brilliant corner bounces across the face of goal, prompting a big appeal for handball, and then Success misses a bouncing ball four yards from goal! Watford almost nicked it, though that would have been harsh on West Ham. The first half was dreadful, the second extremely enjoyable. Thanks for your company, night.
90+1 min There will be three minutes of added time. In the first of those, Edmilson Fernandes replaces the man of the match Lanzini. His second-half performance was delightful.
90 min Lanzini backheels to Cresswell, who produces another killer cross from the left. It’s about to be headed in at the far post by the stooping Feghouli when Holebas dives to head behind for a corner. Superb defending.
88 min Now it’s Watford who are pushing for a winner. Holebas’s cross is headed behind for a corner by Reid – and Britos misses a great chance! It was a big, booming corner from the left, curled towards the six-yard line. Britos towered above Fonte but was so preoccupied with winning that battle that he didn’t time his header and ended up shouldering it wide.
87 min Bilic has been in a volcanic funk all match. He’ll go postal if they lose this.
RED CARD: ANTONIO (WEST HAM)
86 min Michail Antonio gets a second yellow card for a deliberate handball. No arguments. Well, there shouldn’t be any arguments but there are from Slaven Bilic.
Updated
85 min Watford break dangerously through Doucoure, who finds Success on the left. He is easily dispossessed by Fonte.
83 min Another player is booked for fouling Lanzini. This time it’s Holebas. Lanzini has been absolutely majestic since half-time.
Updated
81 min Isaac Success replaces Niang for Watford.
80 min Hindsight shows that Watford declared at 1-0 up. That’s okay after 70 minutes, but not so much after three minutes.
79 min Doucoure is booked for pulling back Lanzini. Watford haven’t been able to deal with Lanzini in the second half.
77 min Kouyate breaks away from Niang just outside the Watford area. Niang puts his hand on Kouyate’s shoulder and then hoofs him up the trousers. The referee says play on, a decision with which Slaven Bilic is not entirely enamoured.
The goal was made by Antonio, who took a good pass from Lanzini and roared thrillingly away from Kaboul and into the box. He curled a low left-footed shot which flashed off the inside of both posts at pace before rebounding perfectly for Ayew to tap into the open net
Updated
GOAL! Watford 1-1 West Ham (Ayew 73)
Ayew gets a deserved equaliser!
71 min West Ham don’t deserve to lose this game. They have been terrific since half-time.
70 min Cleverley is booked for something or other.
69 min Antonio heads wide from a brilliant Cresswell cross! He smashed it in from the left and it bounced up at perfectly at the far post for Antonio, who ducked in front of Britos but headed fractionally wide from six yards. He should have scored.
Updated
68 min Niang is booked for a foul on Lanzini. West Ham’s pressure is relentless at the moment.
66 min Slaven Bilic is going to lose it any second now.
65 min West Ham make a change: Andre Ayew replaces Robert Snodgrass.
65 min Kouyate is booked for running Niang over.
62 min Great save from Gomes! Snodgrass’s deep free-kick from the right was headed back across the box by Antonio, and then Fonte powered a header towards goal from eight yards. Gomes flew to his left like a cartoon character to make a superb save at full stretch.
Updated
62 min Lanzini is starting to run the game, and West Ham have been so much sharper since half-time.
59 min Another great cross from Lanzini, this time low and diagonal, is about to be tapped into an empty net by Antonio when Gomes gets down to palm it away.
Updated
58 min Lanzini goes past a couple of defenders and lobs a cross to the far post, where Cathcart makes a great headed clearance under pressure from Snodgrass.
54 min Capoue plays a fine disguised chip towards Deeney, who flattens Fonte while knocking it down to Cleverley. He can’t quite take it on the run and it goes through to Randolph.
52 min A Watford substitution: Craig Cathcart for Daryl Janmaat.
Updated
50 min Kouyate, who conceded the penalty in the first half, appeals for one after a wrestle with Niang. The referee, whose name is Craig Pawson, gives a foul against Kouyate. There was definitely a foul by Niang. The issue is whether Kouyate fouled him first. Glenn Hoddle thinks he did; Martin Keown doesn’t.
Updated
47 min It’s been a fast start to the second half from West Ham. Feghouli chips Gomes nonchalantly from 25 yards, though the referee had already blown for a foul and there were no complaints - not even on social media!!!!!
46 min Peep peep! Watford begin the second half, kicking from left to right.
Half time: Watford 1-0 West Ham
Watford lead through Troy Deeney’s early penalty in a largely uneventful game. Mauro Zarate, who won the penalty, was stretchered off with a bad injury just before the break, which meant 11 minutes of added time. See you in 10 minutes for the second half.
45+10 min Antonio is booked for leaving a foot in on Behrami.
45+9 min Zarate has been moved onto the stretcher and the medical team are now taking him from the field. He is replaced by Abdoulaye Doucoure.
45+6 min This looks like a very serious injury. He’s being moved very gingerly onto the stretcher, with his legs strapped together.
45+4 min Zarate still hasn’t left the field. They are still preparing to move him onto the stretcher.
45+2 min Zarate is being stretchered off. I’m not sure what happened but he’s in serious pain.
45+1 min A good chance for West Ham. Cresswell’s excellent low cross is palmed out by the diving Gomes to Snodgrass, but he’s too slow to react and his second touch is a tackle.
43 min Watford break through Holebas, who runs 50 yards down the left. He gets into the area, with options in front of goal, and then decides to have a cup of coffee. That allows Fonte to get back, slide in and block the belated cross.
Updated
41 min Antonio flicks the ball over Britos, muscles past him on the inside and hits a shot from six yards that is crucially blocked by Kaboul. Antonio has been a big influence in the last 15 minutes.
38 min I don’t think this will be the opening game on Match of the Day tonight.
37 min The resulting free-kick is whacked over the bar by Lanzini, a miserable effort when he had players in the middle.
Updated
36 min Antonio goes on a strong run down the left before being put in an ejector seat by Janmaat, who is booked.
Updated
33 min Kouyate charges down the right, and puts a cross straight out of play.
29 min A nice passing move from West Ham, their best of the match, ends when Snodgrass’s low ball towards Feghouli is well claimed by Gomes.
Updated
28 min Fonte slices a clearance straight out of play, generously supplying a microcosm of West Ham’s performance so far.
26 min In case you missed it, look at this goal from Zarate earlier in the season.
25 min Holebas heads behind for a West Ham corner, their second. Snodgrass curls it in from the right and it’s headed away. West Ham have created very little thus far.
23 min Zarate is going to continue for the time being.
21 min Zarate is in a fair bit of pain after a foul from Feghouli. He looks like he might have twisted his ankle.
18 min An excellent chance for West Ham. Feghouli mugs the dithering Holebas and moves into the box before giving to Snodgrass, whose first-time shot is crucially blocked by Kaboul.
16 min Zarate makes space for a fierce shot that whacks off the head of Reid. Watford look very lively going forward.
14 min Holebas’s long-range drive deflects wide off Kouyate. Nothing comes of the corner.
11 min Antonio’s dangerous low cross from his left is shanked to safety by Britos. That could easily have gone into his own net.
9 min Watford are content to sit deep and play on the break, especially now they are ahead. Slaven Bilic is already patrolling the touchline with his weary face on.
7 min West Ham haven’t exactly flown out of the traps. In fact they haven’t even crawled out of them. They are still in them, fast asleep, dreaming of a better world.
Updated
6 min Niang picks up a loose ball in midfield, galumphs towards goal and hits a storming rising drive from 25 yards that just clears the crossbar with Randolph beaten. That was gloriously struck.
GOAL! Watford 1-0 West Ham (Deeney 3 pen)
Troy Deeney cracks it hard and low to the left. Good penalty. Randolph went the right way but was nowhere near it.
Updated
Zarate was going nowhere, near the byline, and Kouyate just ran him over.
Updated
PENALTY TO WATFORD!
Kouyate is penalised for a challenge on Zarate. Absolutely stupid, and needless, and a clear penalty.
1 min West Ham, in claret and blue, kick off from left to right. Watford are in yellow.
It’s a wet, windy evening in Watford. Who wants some it the most?
Team news
Watford (4-3-3) Gomes; Janmaat, Kaboul, Britos, Holebas; Cleverley, Behrami, Capoue; Zarate, Deeney, Niang.
Substitutes: Arlauskis, Prodl, Success, Cathcart, Doucoure, Zuniga, Okaka.
West Ham (4-2-3-1) Randolph; Kouyate, Fonte, Reid, Cresswell; Obiang, Noble; Feghouli, Lanzini, Snodgrass; Antonio.
Substitutes: Adrian, Byram, Masuaku, Collins, Fernandes, Ayew, Calleri.
Referee His name is Craig Pawson.
Updated
Preamble
In these insufferably narcissistic times, blustering underachievement has greater cachet than quiet achievement. Let’s change that. Let’s give it up for Watford and West Ham, who have both ensured safety with a third of the season remaining.
The two teams have had impressive seasons for different reasons. Watford have achieved stability despite changing their manager every five minutes, and West Ham have recovered from the mess that was the first few months of their season. As any Championship Manager vet knows, once you are tipped for the sack it is nigh-on impossible to turn things round. But Bilic has done that.
West Ham, almost unnoticed, have won six of their last 10 league games, which puts them above Liverpool and Arsenal in the form table. A win for either team would put them ninth. But don’t expect them to get much credit for that.
Kick off is at 5.30pm.
Updated
