Watford 1-2 Huddersfield Town: Ward double heaps more pressure on Watford boss Ismael

Watford lost at home for the fifth time in six matches as Championship strugglers Huddersfield came from behind to win at Vicarage Road.

It meant a winning start for new Terriers boss Andre Breitenreiter but heaped more pressure on under-fire Watford head coach Valerien Ismael.

The Hornets are just nine points clear of the drop zone and seven points ahead of the Terriers, who climb to 19th.

Breitenreiter made three changes for his first game in charge with Delano Burgzorg making his first appearance since Boxing Day and the visitors started the brighter.

Josh Koroma drew an early save from Ben Hamer and Burgzorg saw a deflected shot loop inches past the post after intercepting a sloppy pass in the Hornets half.

With the home faithful getting restless, Ismael made a double change after just 26 minutes with Tom Ince and Giorgi Chakvetadze brought off the bench.

Hamer needed to deny Burgzorg with a smart save at his near post before Watford’s first real attempt saw Yaser Asprilla thread a ball through for Ince who saw his effort saved by Town keeper Lee Nicholls.

After the turnaround Jack Rudoni curled past the base of Hamer’s post and Asprilla fired straight at the keeper at the other end before the deadlock was broken on 55 minutes when Dennis took a touch to control Asprilla’s low cross from the right and lashed past Nicholls.

Dennis was forced off moments later with Mileta Rajovic coming on and the substitute miscued a header from a Chakvetadze cross and dragged another shot wide soon after while Ince crashed a first-time effort narrowly past the post from Matheus Martins’ low centre as the Hornets sought to seal it.

They were made to pay for missed chances as after Ward levelled on 71 minutes as he nipped in between two defenders to meet Yuta Nakayama’s cross from the left and head past Hamer.

Ben Wiles fizzed an effort narrowly over Hamer’s crossbar but with eight minutes left Ward darted in to meet a cross from the right from Tom Edwards and prod a near-post finish past Hamer to turn the game on its head and spark a chorus of boos at the final whistle.

Town’s win made it back-to-back victories at Vicarage Road for the first time and meant the Hornets’ three-game losing streak at home is their worst in more than a decade.

‘We accept the criticism of the fans’ – Watford head coach Valerien Ismael

“It was more than (disappointing) – I understand completely the frustration of our fans,” Ismael told BBC Three Counties Radio.

“We tried to have an impact on the game (by making a double substitution after 26 minutes) but actually I could have changed all the players. It’s difficult to explain because believe me it was not the game plan.

“We cannot explain why we struggle like that at home. I am accountable as a coach for the performance but the players are responsible for their own performance.

“Sometimes you cannot explain. You stand on the sideline and see exactly what you have to do. Nobody wanted to take responsibility with the ball. You don’t want to make a mistake but you end up making one anyway and you build the momentum of the opponent.

“Today is just the mental side, it’s not physical, it’s not technical. We needed to step up and we didn’t.

“I expected more, the fans expected more, I think the players themselves expected more. Today we accept all the criticism we get from the fans.”

Huddersfield head coach Andre Breitenreiter told BBC Radio Leeds:

“We played with high intensity, full of energy, all the players gave their best. I told the boys it never depends on only one or two players.

“We had a fantastic first half. We should score but sometimes this is how football works. Watford scored and we needed some minutes to come back but we played football.

“Danny Ward scored the first but it was the belief and conviction to win the game – this is what I like. Not to be comfortable with a point, we wanted to win. This is what I want to see and the boys deserved it.”