Sarr strikes twice as City feel the Hornets’ sting
WATFORD BRISTOL CITY 6 0
ISMAILA Sarr struck twice as Watford inflicted a crushing 6-0 defeat on Bristol City at Vicarage Road to get their promotion challenge back on track.
Xisco Munoz’s side came into this game without a win and having scored just once in their previous three league games.
But they returned to form in stunning style, racing into a four-goal half-time lead before cruising to the comfortable victory that tightened their grip on fourth place in the Sky Bet Championship and moved them to within six points of the automatic promotion places.
The margin of victory was Watford’s biggest for six years and the clean sheet made it 14 shut-outs for the season.
A Ken Sema goal gave the Hornets an early lead before Sarr, Will Hughes and Sema’s second effectively killed off the game before the break.
Sarr and Philip Zinckernagel then wrapped up the win to maintain Watford’s outstanding home form and condemn Dean Holden’s visitors to a fourth successive league defeat.
City lie in mid-table and a miserable afternoon was summed up by the fact they were forced to wait until the 82nd minute before registering a shot on target.
Sema immediately carved open the Robins defence and, when he pulled the ball back in one of the game’s first attacks, Taylor Moore could only divert the strike into the City net.
The visitors had only themselves to blame when they faced a two-goal deficit with just 15 minutes gone.
This time is was Zak Vyner’s misdirected back-pass that allowed Watford midfielder Tom Cleverley to steal possession and set up Sarr for the winger’s first goal of the afternoon. The home side benefited from a slice of luck when they extended their lead 15 minutes later, with Hughes’ shot taking a deflection as it flew over goalkeeper Daniel Bentley.
And Sarr turned provider when he set up Sema 10 minutes before the break, with the Swede applying a composed finish for his second.
There was no let-up for Holden’s side after the restart and Sarr emphasised the gulf between the teams with a curling 55th-minute shot that flew beyond Bentley to take his season tally to seven goals.
And Zinckernagel completed the win after appearing as a 61st-minute substitute when he turned home from close range with Sarr again the provider.
Watford: Bachmann,Femenia,Troost-Ekong, Sierralta, Masina Cleverley, Hughes, Chalobah, Sarr, Joao Pedro, Sema.
Subs: Wilmot, Zinckernagel, Deeney, Cathcart, Gosling Lazaar ,Gray, Perica, Elliot.
Bristol City: Bentley, Vyner, Kalas, Moore, Hunt, Lansbury, Paterson, Massengo, Towler, Diedhiou, Semenyo. Subs: Nagy, O’Leary, Mariappa, Wells, Pearson, Bakinson Bell, Palmer.
Ref: John Brooks (Leicestershire).