Valerien Ismael lauded his Watford players for their “brilliant” team performance as the Hornets ended a 16-game winless away run by beating Swansea 1-0 in south Wales.
Substitute Ken Sema struck a spectacular winner in the 82nd minute to earn the visitors all three points with what was his first goal of the campaign.
It was Watford’s first win on the road since beating Norwich 1-0 at Carrow Road in January, and boss Ismael was full of praise for his squad.
“It’s a very long time [since Watford won away], nine months now,” said the Frenchman.
“Congratulations to the players. I said after the game ‘thank you’ for another team performance.
“It was important to be strong and win our duels. We knew that we’ve got the quality to make the difference at any time.
“It was a brilliant performance in a difficult away game. We managed the challenge well.
“It’s a great feeling for everyone, especially for our fans, who came all the way to Swansea in midweek. They will drive back home tonight with a smile on their face.”
Harry Darling and Matt Grimes had decent chances to open the scoring for the Swans while Vakoun Bayo headed straight at Carl Rushworth with what was Watford’s clearest opening in a fairly tame first half.
Kristian Pedersen’s effort in the 72nd minute was ruled out as the contest appeared destined to end goalless.
The defender headed Grimes’ corner beyond Daniel Bachmann, only for referee Andrew Kitchen to disallow the effort after spotting a foul in the box.
It left Sema with the opportunity to steal the headlines late on, with the Sweden international’s thumping strike flying past Rushworth and into the net.
Darling twice went close in the final stages as Swansea pushed for an equaliser, but Bachmann produced a pair of fine saves as the Hornets tasted success on the road at last.
Defeat – Swansea’s second in succession following a four-game winning streak – saw Michael Duff’s side drop to 18th in the Championship table while Watford moved up to 15th.
And Duff was less than impressed with referee Kitchen’s decision to disallow Pedersen’s header.
“I thought we had a good goal disallowed,” he said.
“I think it’s that type of night where, if that goes in, we win the game.
“They (officials) said there was a foul in the build-up to it, but I’ve watched it back several times. I don’t know where the foul is.
“For us not to see where the foul is supposed to have taken place is frustrating because it was one of those nights, it was fine margins.
“They go down the other end and they find a moment of quality where the lad sticks it in the top corner from 20 yards. That’s the one bit we couldn’t find tonight.”
Hurtig the hero after late goal sends Arsenal into Champions League quarters
Lina Hurtig's 89th minute winner ensured Arsenal progressed to the quarter-finals of the Women's Champions League after edging Juventus 1-0 on Thursday.
After being frustrated for large parts of the encounter, Hurtig bundled home from close range after Martina Lenzini's poor clearance to book the Gunners' place in the last eight.
Despite Arsenal dominating the early exchanges, it was Juventus who had the first sight of goal, though Eva Schatzer's effort was easy for Daphne van Domselaar to gather.
In a first half that saw just two shots on target, both coming from the visitors, Renee Slegers' substitutes proved to be the difference for Arsenal.
Slegers introduced Beth Mead, Stina Blackstenius and Hurtig late on, with the latter somehow putting Kim Little's cross over the bar from five yards out.
However, the Swede would atone for her earlier error, combining with fellow substitute Blackstenius to net against her former club and send them out of the competition with two group games remaining.
Meanwhile, in Group D, Barcelona edged closer to the quarter-finals of the competition with a convincing 4-1 victory over St. Polten at the Generali Arena.
The reigning champions are still three points behind Manchester City following their 2-1 win over Hammarby, and know a win against the Swedes next month will see them progress.
Kika Nazareth opened the scoring in the 20th minute after capitalising on a mistake by Kamila Dubcova, notching her second nine minutes later from close range.
Barca found themselves three goals up at the break when Vicky Lopez netted her first goal in the competition to put the result beyond doubt.
There was also a landmark moment for Alexia Putellas, who netted her 200th goal for the club with a well-taken effort into the far corner.
Valentina Madl took some of the shine off an otherwise impressive display from the visitors, who have now taken their tally to 20 goals from their four matches in the competition.
Guardiola agrees two-year contract extension with Man City
Pep Guardiola will be Manchester City manager for at least two more seasons after 2024-25, after he signed a two-year contract extension on Thursday.
The 53-year-old was coming to the end of his City deal, which was due to expire at the end of the current campaign, but he has opted to remain at the Etihad Stadium.
The deal itself will take Guardiola's tenure at the club to over a decade, making him City's longest-serving manager since Les McDowall in 1963.
There had been suggestions that he may leave at the end of the season following the announcement that director of football Txiki Begiristain was on his way out.
Guardiola was strongly linked with the England job after Gareth Southgate resigned in the wake of their Euro 2024 final defeat, but the Football Association appointed Thomas Tuchel last month.
“Manchester City means so much to me," Guardiola said. “This is my ninth season here; we have experienced so many amazing times together. I have a really special feeling for this football club.
“That is why I am so happy to be staying for another two more seasons.
“Thank you to everyone for continuing to trust and support me – The Owner, The Chairman Khaldoon, Ferran, Txiki, the players and, of course, the fans… everyone connected to Manchester City. It has always been an honour, a pleasure and a privilege to be here.
“I have said this many times before, but I have everything a manager could ever wish for, and I appreciate that so much.
“Hopefully, now we can add more trophies to the ones we have already won. That will be my focus.”
Having been appointed in 2016, Guardiola is by some distance Manchester City's most successful manager of all time, having won 18 major trophies during his time at the club.
That list includes their first-ever Champions League triumph in 2023 and six Premier League titles, including an unprecedented four on the spin.
He also boasts a 72.04% win percentage across all competitions, which is unsurprisingly the highest of any full-time City manager in history.
Shaw at the double as Man City progress in Champions League
Khadija Shaw scored twice as Manchester City beat Hammarby 2-1 to seal their place in the Women's Champions League quarter-finals.
Gareth Taylor's team entered Thursday's game with a perfect record in Group D, and their fourth win in as many European matches ensured they finished in the top two.
Shaw—the leading scorer in the Women's Super League this season with eight goals—put them ahead in the 31st minute, driving into the area after taking in Yui Hasegawa's pass before seeing her shot deflect into the top corner.
Shaw was booked for celebrating in front of the home fans despite appearing to have objects thrown at her from the stands, and Hammarby should have levelled when Julia Blakstad fired wide 10 minutes later.
The hosts did draw level three minutes into the second half as Ellen Wangerheim tapped home while City's Laura Blindkilde Brown was down appealing for a free-kick.
That parity was short-lived, though, as Shaw blasted into the top corner from 25 yards out, taking her overall tally for this season to 12 goals in all competitions.
In Group C, meanwhile, Bayern Munich lost their perfect record as they played out a 1-1 draw with Valerenga, boosting Arsenal's hopes of topping the pile.
Jovana Damnjanovic came off the bench to put Bayern ahead 15 minutes from time in Norway, but Elise Thorsnes headed home following an 88th-minute corner to snatch a point for the hosts.
Arsenal could now move within a point of Bayern when they face Juventus in Group C's other match later on Thursday.
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