Fans protest geed us up says Moyes
Welbeck ends famine to fire Hornets survival bid
went down fighting at Vicarage Road, substitute Adam Idah going agonisingly close to snatching a deserved point.
Welbeck said: “It means a lot to me and means a lot to the whole team. It is one that puts us on our way now.We will give it our all from now, but I am speechless after the goal.
“I knew I had caught it, kept my eye on the ball and it went in the top bins. It was a great goal and I am very pleased with that one.”
Norwich had scored only once in their previous nine league games, but when you are down on your luck and rattle the collection tin, you can always bank on Watford to give generously. And when Onel Hernandez shrugged off Kiko Femenia’s feeble challenge to feed Emi Buendia in the box, the Argentine playmaker broke his duck for the season leftfooted into the far corner after just four minutes.
Within six minutes, Watford grabbed an equaliser of risible simplicity, Craig Dawson nodding home Etienne Capoue’s free-kick at the far post. Not for the first time, Norwich played with verve and spirit going forward – but they leave the back gate open too often. The Canaries were indebted to keeper Tim Krul for
Danny to have come with a big reputation and be injured so early.
“He has been patient and his desire to get back has been really big.
“When I’ve not played him, he has been disappointed but he has to trust us to look after him.
“I thought we showed a lot of character – not always composure – but a sharp save to keep out Welbeck’s header from a Will Hughes corner, and the former Gunners striker should have done better from Sarr’s deep cross just before the interval.
But Welbeck’s luck finally turned 10 minutes into the second period with his acrobatic party piece to put the Hornets in front – the first time this season Watford have fallen behind and overturned the deficit.
The Hornets still had to live on their nerves, Mario Vrancic directing a free header wastefully wide before Idah, stretching to meet Josip Drmic’s flick, only managed to prod wide from four yards out. WATFORD (4-2-3-1): Foster 6; Femenia 6, Kabasele 7, Dawson 7, Masina 6; Doucoure 6, Capoue 7 (Chalobah 87); Sarr 7, Deeney 7, Hughes 8 (Cleverley 59, 7); Welbeck 8. Goals: Dawson 10, Welbeck 55. NORWICH (4-2-3-1): Krul 6; Aarons 7, Klose 5, Godfrey 6, Lewis 6; Tettey 5 (McLean 54, 6), Vrancic 7; Stiepermann 7 (Idah 75), Buendia 7, Hernandez 6 (Martin 83); Pukki 5 (Drmic 83). Goal: Buendia 4.
the result was always more important than the performance. “Danny is a player with a lot of ability and he’s had a really good career. For him to score a winner of such quality is a great for us because it was a difficult game. “It was a hard-fought win but it’s not bought us breathing space – it’s just an
important win in the context of our season.”
The result leaves Norwich 10 points from safety. Daniel Farke wore the look of a manager resigned to relegation but praised his players for their spirited performance.
He said: “I can’t ask for more in terms of effort.
“I want the players to show pride, dignity and responsibility to the shirt and I thought we did that.”
FOR the first time since the resumption, playing without supporters may be a blessing forWest Ham.
Because in the exact same scenario two years ago as the Hammers face tonight, play was interrupted by fans on the pitch and the directors had to move to safety.
Yet David Moyes, below, says it was that unwanted intervention that carried them over the line.
“In many ways it inspired us,” Moyes recalled. “After that we got a lot of criticism because I took the players away to Miami for a few days. But as a group we
WEST HAM BURNLEY 6PM, BT SPORT 2
Vdecided that when we came back we weren’t going to let anything affect us. It was a great time for us.
“So we’re playing for the supporters.” Burnley boss Sean Dyche says it is too expensive to rejuvenate his ageing squad. “Unless you bring good young players through your system – people like Dwight McNeil – then it costs. Older players tend to be cheaper,” he said. Burnley had four men aged over 30 in their last game.
WEST HAM (4-2-3-1): Fabianski; Fredericks, Diop, Ogbonna, Cresswell; Rice, Soucek; Bowen, Fornals, Lanzini; Antonio.
BURNLEY (4-4-2): Pope; Bardsley, Tarkowski, Long, Taylor; Pieters, Brownhill, Westwood, McNeil; Rodriguez, Vydra.