Watford strike late to pile pressure on West Brom
LONDON: West Bromwich Albion manager Alan Pardew faces a major battle to hold onto his job after Watford’s Troy Deeney struck a late winner at Vicarage Road to inflict a fifth consecutive Premier League defeat on the Midlands outfit.
Basement side West Brom desperately needed something from the game and looked to be heading for a point until Deeney broke clear after 77 minutes and fired a superb shot past Ben Foster into the roof of the net.
Pardew’s future looks certain to be called into question with his side rooted to the foot of the table and his dismal record of one win in 15 games since he took charge in November. The latest defeat leaves West Brom eight points adrift of the safety zone and it remains to be seen if Pardew will be in charge for their next game against Leicester City next weekend. Earlier, Southampton were held to a 0-0 draw by Stoke City with both teams missing opportunities to get crucial points as they fight for Premier League survival.
Stoke started the first half brightly but failed to create clear-cut chances, allowing Southampton back into the game as both teams struggled to make their mark in the final third and midfielder Badou Ndiaye missed the Potters’ best chance to take the lead.
Southampton were dominant in the second half and created numerous scoring opportunities, with Sofiane Boufal and Josh Sims among those to misfire shots from inside the box, as the Saints piled on the pressure but to no avail.
The result means second-from-bottom Stoke could drift further away from safety as Swansea City beat West Ham United and Crystal Palace play Manchester United on Monday, while Southampton hover a point and a place above the bottom three. — Reuters