Watford respect the Cup at last ... and it pays off

CONGRATULATIONS to Javi Gracia and his players. Watford are having a brilliant campaign and are 90 minutes from an FA Cup final.

Earlier in the season, I accused them of disrespecting the competition when Gracia made 11 changes for his side’s fourth- round tie against Newcastle.

His gamble paid off with Watford winning 2-0 — but for many Premier League teams, it is a mistake.

West Ham took a similar risk in the fourth round, making six changes at AFC Wimbledon. They were humiliated 4- 2. Leicester rested seven at Newport in the third round and were dumped out.

Gracia, to his credit, has taken a different approach since then. He rested seven players at Manchester City last week to ensure they were fresh for the quarter-final.

Watford are on course for their best league finish since 1983 but this season will not live long in the memory if coming eighth is all they have to show for it.

Win the FA Cup for the first time, however, and this will go down as one of the greatest campaigns in the club’s history.