Watford vs Barnsley - Match Review

Venue: Vicarage Road (Tuesday 19th January)

An evening kick-off trip down to Hertfordshire saw the reds fall to a narrow 1-0 defeat at the hands of the hornets.

A good performance against a strong promotion, seeking side says a lot, despite not gaining any points, especially due to the fact the host’s goal was a converted Troy Deeney spot kick and not from open play. An unintentional, but clear, handball from Callum Brittain gave the referee no option but to blow his whistle and despite a strong hand from Jack Walton, it wasn’t enough to keep out the Watford skipper’s strike.

A statistic that really sums up the game is that Barnsley had 11 shots to Watford’s 9 but failed to hit the target once, which marked an offensively frustrating day. However positives can be taken back to Oakwell with Valerian Ismael’s team as the proved that the Tykes aren’t an easy nut to crack.

The Reds next face Norwich City at Oakwell in the FA Cup with the chance to proceed to the fifth round to play either Chelsea or Luton Town at Oakwell.