The game between Chelsea and Watford started the second spell for Hiddink with the club he last managed in 2009. Although the result was not the one which was expected for the Dutch manager, there were definitely some positives that the manager could take from the game.
For a start, the chants in favor of Jose Mourinho were not present and there was the kind of support one expects from the home support at Stamford Bridge in the match against Watford. Chelsea started brightly like they did in the game against Sunderland and enjoyed around eighty percent possession in the first ten to twelve minutes.
Finally they did break the deadlock, albeit surprisingly, through a well taken goal by their out of form forward Diego Costa. Like in the game against Sunderland, Chelsea scored through a corner kick with John Terry providing the assist. Chelsea looked comfortable for most of the first half until an inexplicable moment of madness from Matic.
The Serbian midfielder completely misjudged the flight of the ball handling the ball in the box. Troy Deeney had no problems converting the resulting spot kick. In the second half again, the game started to look scrappy with Watford having the better chances to score. In the end, it was none other than Ighalo, who helped Watford take the lead after a wicked deflection from his strike took the ball past Courtois.
Although Chelsea did look more fluent in this game, it once again felt their defensive frailties, which have let them down all season, would haunt them again. However, a tremendous pick out by Willian put Costa through, who impressively scored for the second time in the match and put Chelsea level. Costa, in particular, looked sharp and would be ruing the moment when he took the yellow card, which would make him miss the match at Old Trafford.
However, the turning point in the match came late on in the second half. Substitute Hazard was fouled in the box by Behrami. However, Oscar lacked the composure shown by Deeney on the other end and missed the resulting spot kick. Watford finally held on for a very good point. On the balance of play, it seemed like a fair result with both teams creating chances at either end.
Hiddink would be disappointed with only a draw and it shows that the Chelsea manager still has some things to sort out. Next up is United who have their own struggles and a win at Old Trafford would certainly be a statement from Chelsea's point of view.
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| Costa double ensures the points are split against an impressive Watford |
Finally they did break the deadlock, albeit surprisingly, through a well taken goal by their out of form forward Diego Costa. Like in the game against Sunderland, Chelsea scored through a corner kick with John Terry providing the assist. Chelsea looked comfortable for most of the first half until an inexplicable moment of madness from Matic.
The Serbian midfielder completely misjudged the flight of the ball handling the ball in the box. Troy Deeney had no problems converting the resulting spot kick. In the second half again, the game started to look scrappy with Watford having the better chances to score. In the end, it was none other than Ighalo, who helped Watford take the lead after a wicked deflection from his strike took the ball past Courtois.
Although Chelsea did look more fluent in this game, it once again felt their defensive frailties, which have let them down all season, would haunt them again. However, a tremendous pick out by Willian put Costa through, who impressively scored for the second time in the match and put Chelsea level. Costa, in particular, looked sharp and would be ruing the moment when he took the yellow card, which would make him miss the match at Old Trafford.
However, the turning point in the match came late on in the second half. Substitute Hazard was fouled in the box by Behrami. However, Oscar lacked the composure shown by Deeney on the other end and missed the resulting spot kick. Watford finally held on for a very good point. On the balance of play, it seemed like a fair result with both teams creating chances at either end.
Hiddink would be disappointed with only a draw and it shows that the Chelsea manager still has some things to sort out. Next up is United who have their own struggles and a win at Old Trafford would certainly be a statement from Chelsea's point of view.
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