The principles we’ve built here for a long time were on show
Watford boss Quique Sánchez Flores saw his side drop back to the bottom of the Premier League with Burnley’s 3-0 win against his team at Vicarage Road.
He was pleased with the way his side played in the first half as the Clarets struggled to get into the game. He said: “In the first half we were happy in the dressing room. Positive, thinking about keeping going with the performance, thinking about we have under control against the opponent, thinking about we are playing the ball quick, thinking about we are playing close to the box of the other team and thinking about we had the best chances. All of this in the first half.”
But it was Burnley won went in front early in the second half. He added : “Affect a lot our mentality, affect a lot our spirit, affect a lot our energy and the other team got more power and more confidence, it was more difficult.”
On returning to the bottom, he said: “It’s football. After winning at Norwich we didn’t think everything was solved, but after defeat we don’t think that everything was wrong. It’s football, it’s a long race and we need to be positive thinking about where we can improve.”
I think it is fair to say that Sean Dyche wasn’t too impressed with what he’d seen when he made his way down the tunnel at half time. “It was a poor first half from us,” he said. We were a long way off, never got a grip of things and the defensive unit and our resilience kept us in it. That’s a really important asset to have and I marvel at it. It’s unlikely you are going to dominate ninety minutes in the Premier League, but when that’s happening you have to do all the basics well and the ugly, hard yards. We did that to keep in it and there were no harsh words at half time.
“We went out in the second half with a firmer edge and gave a more clear-minded performance and got our rewards. We got the first, which calmed us, and once you get the second, and it was a penalty, we are in a pretty strong position. In the end, I don’t think it was a 3-0 game, but we will take that gladly.”
It was three more goals for us and of that he said: “Down the years, it’s hard scoring in the Premier League and if you look from last Christmas, our scoring record has been really strong. That’s a powerful side of the team, but it comes down to the players’ ability to take those chances and that’s what we’ve done again.
“We’ve only had that one blip, at Sheffield United, and we said that had to be a one off. I think we’ve reacted really well and to see that bounce back in the last two games is really important. The principles we’ve built here for a long time were on show and even in the first half, when we were below par, it’s about staying in the game. We did that and knew we could improve. We did that and found the big moments and that’s what it’s about.”
He had words of praise for goalkeeper Nick Pope. “I must say, I thought Nick Pope was terrific,” he said. There were a couple of saves which you would expect him to make, but his all round game, his handling, his crossing and the ability to clean up was first class. He continues to develop and learn and we’re enjoying what he’s about at the moment.”
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