Mariappa coming on as a substitute and immediately receiving a yellow card was incredibly painful to watch. Peak Mariappa that. A good win against a relatively poor side overall. They had enough about them to make it competitive but they were always second best against our defence tonight. We were slightly lucky to score but were comfortably better. Another clean sheet, and no goals conceded in the FA Cup so far this season. Not the prettiest performance but I'll take that all week.
It's become apparent that Javi don't want flair football, he wants sh*thouse wins. So far its got us at 8th in the table and another step closer to Wembley. As good as that sounds, I feel like we could be far more effective if we played players in their actual positions. It can't hurt having Deulofeu and Penaranda swap in for Hughes and Sema considering the latter two offer little in terms of completed passes and help with defence - especially Sema. It's genuinely like playing with 9 men with those two giving the ball away and getting tackeled every time they get it. Doucoure, once again, shows how lacking our midfield is when he's not playing. Not saying Capoue was terrible today, but he definitely needs a capable midfield partner and I don't think Clevs is the man. Gomes and the defence were the strongest of the lot today which is saying something considering there was still blunders being made at the back. Janmaat is trying too hard to look like Eric Dier.... Quite literally Not too fussed about the performance if we progress gradually though so onwards and upwards! Oh, and did our lot sneek in a drum in the away end?
Some of the criticism I think is unfair. We were brought down to their level & beat them at their own game. It was always going to be a gritty type of game. Nice to see a Watford team who can outwit all that nowadays & to me the gulf in class between the two divisions was clear to see.
For all those complaining about the performance, QPR made it a battle, and we duly out-battled them. Nothing wrong with that. Our fitness levels showed at the end, they ran out of ideas and looked ragged. Let's have some love for the defence: three clean sheets in a row, zero goals conceded in the cup.
I had £100 on Watford to score in both halves & over 1.5 corners in both halves @ 5.00. I've just been conned out of £500. The boys did what I needed to them but the lino has ****ed me over
Now you say it, that place has never been mentioned in Partridge. Maybe Coogan’s Islington glitterati were as cowed by the pronunciation as me.
We definitely haven't been great going forwards recently but we've been very solid! We've kept six clean sheets in our last eight games in all competitions. Britos and Gomes superb tonight and Capoue also did a good job. Other than that, I thought we were very much below par. I love Javi, but one thing I can't understand is why he persists in playing Cleverley as a central midfielder? He doesn't look half the player he was before his injury last season and is very slow on the ball rarely making any runs to link midfield to attack. The gap between the front two and the central midfielders was alarming and is why we aren't really creating enough. Doucoure is a box-to-box midfielder and we really do miss him when he's not involved! Quina would've been the natural choice for me in Doucoure's absence tonight, at least he gets on the ball and looks forward rather than sideways or backwards! Sema is another one who I can't figure out what he brings to the team? If he's in there to give us defensive cover, which I totally understand, then why not play Masina and Holebas down the left? Or even still stick Cleverley out there to give the left-back cover! Hughes had another disappointing game but I do feel he's being played massively out of position. Anyway, a win is a win, into the next round now and onto Cardiff away next week.
Hughes and Britos were outstanding. Doucoure and Mariappa both looked composed coming on and Quina looked sharp and creative. Sema had a typical game. Gash and then 2 or 3 moments of excellence to force something. If he was consistent in doing thst he'd be a good winger. Kabasele was typical. Solid and then a moment of madness. Cleverley looked off the pace, literally. Needs a pre season to get going, like Chalobah does too. Capoue took his goal well and was the better of the two central midfielders, though the bar was set low. Deeney was ok but not great. Last 20 minutes was better. Gray linked up fairly well when the ball was on the floor. Gomes was good. Claimed a lot of high balls and barring one punch which fell to an attacker edge of the box did everything you have come to expect of him. Janmaat and Holebas didn't look great. Gomes, Britos or Hughes MotM.
A very professional away performance, Q.P.R. Made it a scrap which at the end of the day with the players giving it their all played into our hands! Not sure who the official MOTM was but Britos didn't put a foot wrong, also although some people seem to disagree I thought Hughes had a good game got involved a lot and was always looking to play decent little balls!
Overall, all good. We won away in the 5th round. But did Deeney touch the ball? Classic Champo brawl match scenario & Troy didn’t get his sports bra off.
I am marking our win by watching Kraftwerk videos on YouTube. Feel this is appropriate for the rather industrial, but effective, nature of our performance.
What. A. Game. It had everything - thrills, spills, chances, misses, saves and all round classic entertainment. QPR can at least go home happy that they played their part in a game that will live long in the memory.
Do you want missionary once a month, providing you are quick, don't make a mess, and are finished by the time The Voice starts. Oh and don't find something to criticise. Or do you want something more?
I don't think you can blame Deeney, he didn't see much of the ball, however he wasn't given many balls which he stood much chance of doing anything with, he did actually put the ball through for Grays disallowed effort and also did a lot of donkey work off the ball. The game was won by our defence doing their job and Capoue taking his goal well!
