WATFORD (4-2-3-1):
Gomes 7; Paredes 7 (Nyom 88), Britos 6, Catchart 7, Ake 7; Capoue 8, Watson 7; Behrami 6, Deeney 8 (Amrabat 90), Jurado 8 (Abdi 77); IGHALO 8.
Subs (not used): Pantilimon (gk), Prodl, Guedioura, Anya.
NEWCASTLE (3-4-2-1):
7 Elliot: Made a superb first-half double save to deny Deeney and Capoue, and also saved well from Ighalo after the break
7 LASCELLES: Claimed his first Newcastle goal with an excellent header and was the pick of the three centre-halves for most of the game
5 Coloccini: Got to grips with the new system reasonably well, but was caught playing offside for the first goal and stood off Ighalo for the second
5 Mbemba: Looked shaky for most of the first half, regularly giving the ball away cheaply, and didn’t look especially comfortable with the system
6 Janmaat: Suits the wing-back role as it means he can push forward and was involved in some decent breaks down the right
5 Saivet: Didn’t look out of place on his first Premier League start, but wasn’t really able to influence proceedings
4 Shelvey: Nowhere near as effective as he had been on his debut against West Ham – barely saw the ball in the second half
4 Aarons: Should have hit the target with a good early chance and didn’t look at all comfortable carrying out the defensive side of his wing-back duties
4 Sissoko: Another frustratingly anonymous display from the Frenchman – given his talent, his general lack of end product is appalling
5 Wijnaldum: Could only show his talent in flashes, but still set up Aarons and Mitrovic for two of Newcastle’s best chances of the game
4 Mitrovic: His hold-up play was poor and he continues to lack any sort of composure in front of goal – all of his chances were hurried and scuffed
Subs:
Gouffran (for Aarons, 58): Came on down the left-hand side, but fluffed a good late chance with a dreadful header 4
Perez (for Saivet, 58): A very similar story to Gouffran as he wasted a great headed opportunity and took too many poor options 4
Riviere (for Coloccini, 88)
(not used): Darlow (gk), Taylor, Marveaux, Thauvin.
Man Of The Match: ODION IGHALO – The Watford striker claimed his 14th Premier League goal of the season, and showed just what Newcastle are missing in terms of composure and a clinical edge in front of goal.
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