Watford hit back to draw 3-3 with Reading
Fabbrini pinches a point
FOR a side made up of Spaniards, Italians and Brazilians, Watford showed a very British attitude not to lie down and accept defeat.
Gianfranco Zola’s side were as good in the second half as they were bad in the first when they went 2-0 down at the break.
But with some game-changing substitutions and a never-say-die attitude Watford earned a point from a game that looked dead and buried at half time.
Zola praised his side for not losing the game, but acknowledged that his players have to learn to adapt to the fast pace of the Championship – and quickly.
He said: “There are a lot of new players in the squad and lots of them are foreign and maybe they thought that the game builds slowly like it some other leagues, but they need to learn to start games with a high intensity.
“At half-time I told the players that it was not enough. I thought we were scratching their back and they were punishing us.
“But it pleased me that we never gave up. That is the good thing about this side, sides can score one or two against us but we will not be beaten easily. I am delighted we have that quality in this side.”
Reading took the lead on eight minutes when Adam Le Fondre fired the home side into the lead in spectacular fashion.
Watford keeper Manuel Almunia came off his line to clear a cross from Jobi McAnuff and could only punch it as far as the edge of the area where Le Fondre was waiting and hit a first-time volley through a crowded penalty area into the top corner.
It was no more than Reading deserved and they should have doubled the lead on the half hour mark when Le Fondre robbed possession from Gabriele Angella on the edge of the area but fired his shot straight at ex-Arsenal Almunia.
But the second came before the break when Danny Guthrie floated a free-kick to the back post where Alex Pearce headed the ball into the six-yard box, where Jem Karacan saw his shot saved my Almunia, but the ball rebounded back to the midfielder and he bundled the ball over the line.
It looked like game over with Watford offering little in the way of attack in the first half – but that changed after the break, once Zola had got his point across at half-time.
First Marco Faraoni scored a header from an Almen Abdi corner to give them hope but Karacan soon dampened their spirits, scoring his second of the game after good work from Le Fondre and Nick Blackman.
But Watford were given a lifeline when Diego Fabbrini was pulled down in the box by Guthrie and referee Mike Jones had no hesitiation in pointing to the spot.
Troy Deeney stepped up to coolly slot the ball past Alex McCarthy from the resulting spotkick.
And with stoppage time approaching substitute Fabbrini prodded the ball past McCarthy from close range from a Lewis McGugan deflected shot to salvage a point for the Hornets and bring an end to this thrilling encounter.
Royals boss Nigel Adkins tried not to be too downbeat after the game.
He said: “It was a cracking game of football. It really was. But for a late deflection we could have won the game.
“It was an excellent goal from Adam Le Fondre and then we did well to go in at half time 2-0 up and we deserved that.
“The game was far too open and we gave possession away too easily we could not see the game out thanks to a deflection falls into the path of their player.
“There were a lot of positives going forward and we played good football, and but for a late deflection we could have been celebrating.”