Watford were composed and confident as they picked up an important three points against Aston Villa, said a satisfied Roy Hodgson.
Emmanuel Dennis’ close-range header in the second half was the difference at Villa Park in a competitive encounter, with the Watford manager particularly pleased with the Hornets’ hard work at the other end of the pitch.
“I’m very happy, I thought the base the back four and midfield three gave us was very important,” reflected Hodgson, 74.
“I think there’s still a lot more to come from the three attackers. The key to our victory was the three midfield players, they did very well with the ball and without the ball and that gave the back four the protection to keep Aston Villa at bay.”
Victory over the Villans is a first as Watford manager for Hodgson, who felt his side showed more stability on the ball in the Midlands. The returning Ismaïla Sarr and Imrân Louza both made their mark, playing a part in Dennis’ 78th-minute winner and impressing their new boss.
He continued: “I thought it was a good performance, and I think in the previous three games there have been episodes where there has been good play as well. The players showed a desire to make life difficult for their opponents, that’s been evident since the first game up in Burnley.
“I was pleased today, I thought our composure on the ball was better, we showed a lot more confidence to get on the ball, pass the ball and look to create chances.
“Sarr is very highly-rated, as is Louza. Louza’s second-half performance against Brighton convinced me that he should be in the starting XI today and he certainly didn’t disappoint. With Sarr, we still have an awful lot to get from him, we see glimpses but if we’re going to stay in the league we want more than glimpses, we need match-winning performances.
“He was good today, he got on the ball and produced a good cross and Dennis was in the right place to finish it off and give us the three points which I thought the team performance deserved.”
The 1-0 win is Watford’s second clean sheet in four games, as the defence repelled Aston Villa’s attacking threat. Hodgson praised the midfield’s solidity to prevent their opposition from breaching the backline, and the defensive four’s protection of the goal.
“They [Aston Villa] got frustrated because we made it very difficult for them to play the ball into the areas where they liked, into [Emiliano] Buendía and [Phillipe] Coutinho in particular and with Danny Ings dropping into those spaces,” he said.
“I thought we sealed those spaces off extremely well and have got to be very satisfied with that.”
