Following a comfortable and impressive win at Vicarage Road, beating Brighton and Hove Albion 2-0, Javi Gracia expressed his happiness; with him saying in his post-match interview to the BBC that he is "very proud of my players", as well as praising the "very good ambition" that they showed. Gracia was also quick to give deserved praise to Watford's best player on the afternoon, Roberto Pereyra.
Hornets Buzz
On the result, Gracia stated that he was "very happy with the result and the way the team got it" - as he should be. Watford were on top for pretty much the entirety of the 90 minutes. He continued by saying "We have players that had very good games and dominated them - many shots on target, created many chances, good reactions to losing the ball - and I'm very happy for them." He is right; none of the team had a poor game.
Gracia compared the style of the Hornets' win today to their 1-1 draw against Italian Serie A side Sampdoria earlier this month. "I think today we have played the same way that we played against Sampdoria." He explained, "Very showing, very ambitious."
He would also like to see the positivity emitted from Watford today continued in next week's away trip to Burnley; "We are going to do it the same way in the next games". If a performance like that is repeated, Watford fans are in for a treat.
Perfect Pereyra
Pereyra was superb on Saturday afternoon, and he was soon one of the main subjects of the BBC's interview. Asked whether Pereyra's goal was straight off the training pitch, Gracia answered "Yes, we have tried it many times but it doesn't always finish the same way!"
The manager continued, saying "We scored a similar goal last season with Kiko [Femenia] last season at Vicarage Road," referring to his goal in Watford's 2-2 draw against Bournemouth last season. "and I know Roberto [Pereyra] has a high quality - and he can do it." We should be seeing a lot more of Pereyra throughout the entirety of the season - especially as he's in Gracia's good books.
With 3 out of 4 of the next matches being played at Vicarage Road, Gracia will find the importance to pick up points in their next few matches; "We have to do it. We need to start well. We know with the support of our fans it's easier and I'm sure all the players will make an effort to do it."
He is right. Gracia's record at home is a lot better than his away one, and we all know that points early on in the season matter for Watford.
Gracia will be hoping that his players give him more of the same against Burnley on Saturday and hopefully, looking further, the upcoming games in September and beyond.
Credit to the BBC for all quotes.