Watford handed Wrexham their first league defeat of the year with a 3-1 triumph, keeping their Sky Bet Championship playoff hopes alive.
Marc Bola and Edo Kayembe were the scorers for the home side, while Max Cleworth managed to pull one back for Wrexham. Edoardo Bove sealed the game with his first goal for Watford in stoppage time.
The hosts made four changes following their loss to Stoke, introducing Mattie Pollock, Luca Kjerrumgaard, Nestory Irankunda, and Pierre Ekwah, who made his full debut.
Wrexham made a single change from their Welsh derby win against Swansea, with Ryan Longman subbing in for Issa Kaboré.
Watford had the first opportunity just five minutes in, but Kjerrumgaard headed Bola’s cross wide.
The home side began brightly, and in the 11th minute, a curling shot from Giorgi Chakvetadze struck the crossbar from outside the area.
They opened the scoring after 18 minutes with a counterattack, as Chakvetadze dashed from his own half, backheeling the ball to Bola, who scored past Arthur Okonkwo. There was some controversy, however, as Ollie Rathbone fell in the Watford area, but referee Adam Herczeg chose not to award a foul.
Watford’s second goal came clearly at the 37-minute mark. Irankunda found Kayembe in the center, where he was afforded too much space by the Wrexham defense to score from just outside the box.
Irankunda nearly became a scorer himself just before halftime but sent his volley narrowly wide of the post.
After the break, Saba Goglichidze came close to adding a third for Watford, but his header from a Chakvetadze free kick went wide.
Wrexham found their footing early in the second half and narrowed the gap just four minutes in when Cleworth converted from a Rathbone corner.
“In the second half, we pinned them back,” remarked Wrexham manager Phil Parkinson. “We didn’t get hit on the counter, although we did open up towards the end. We dominated play, and it’s a testament to the players that they fought back against a strong Watford side.”
Pollock was called into action to clear a Dominic Hyam header off the line from a Lewis O’Brien corner as Wrexham sought an equalizer.
With under ten minutes left, Watford again relied on a crucial clearance off the line, with Pollock thwarting another Cleworth header.
As six minutes of stoppage time were indicated, Wrexham pushed fiercely for an equalizer.
Ultimately, the final moment belonged to Watford, as Bola’s shot hit the crossbar, allowing substitute Bove to tap in the rebound.
“I thought we played brilliantly in the second half, but the ball just wouldn’t bounce our way. I could feel that second goal coming,” Parkinson added. “We had much better control in the second half after a patchy first half filled with technical errors.”
This recap includes information from PA.