Watford battled out a competitive 0-0 draw with Chelsea on Wednesday night, continuing a season which has seen them exceed all expectations. Manager Quique Sanchez Flores was delighted with his side's performance and, post-game, defender Sebastian Prodl had lots of positives to take from the result.
In a lively, sometimes fiery encounter, Chelsea huffed and puffed with everything they had in the tank, but Watford held firm, largely thanks to the goalkeeping heroics of Heurelho Gomes, who kept out the Blues when tiredness had begun to creep into Watford's legs late on.
Bright (yellow) future
It is impossible not to be excited at the moment if you are a Watford fan. The team sit 9th in the Premier League table, one point adrift of Liverpool and looking entirely at ease amongst clubs with much bigger prestige.
Flores has worked wonders with his side, and is not content on stopping there: a flurry of January transfer dealings suggest the Spaniard is investing in the future, but there is no doubt the Hornets are also beginning to make a short term impact.
The 0-0 draw with Chelsea constituted another great performance from Watford, and Prodl insisted that although Watford might have been a "little lucky" towards the end, the result was still "well deserved". The defender suggested that, as a whole, the team "very happy" with the performance, and that the entire squad "worked very hard" to get the point.
Unsuprisingly, Prodl pointed towards the heroics of goalkeeper Gomes, whose string of impressive saves kept the score level. For the 28-year-old and his teammates, these performances are no surprise, and as Prodl rightly says, Gomes is showing this "week in, week out". Referencing the fact that the players see him in training every week, Prodl suggested that the team has come to "expect" this level.
Keeping level-headed
In the same vein as his manager and fellow players, Prodl is now looking no further than Saturday's trip to Tottenham Hotspur and the potential for another shock three points. Insisting the side feel "very confident" at the moment, Prodl was however quick to point out that they aren't taking the foot off the gas, and instead insists the team are remaining "cautious".
"The Premier League is very hard", says Prodl, and he is right. Watford are having a great season, but must concentrate on moving forward and continuing to show why they are such an asset to English football's top flight. One thing's for certain: the future looks bright at Vicarage Road.