“I’m proud of how we handled Sunderland’s pressure in the second half and managed to limit their significant chances; we truly earned the win against them,” said Watford’s manager, reflecting on the victory and highlighting the two players he felt were instrumental.
Sunderland suffered their second defeat of the Championship season on Saturday at Watford. Watford manager Tom Cleverley expressed his belief that his team earned the victory due to their strong first-half performance against Sunderland.
The hosts took the lead with Festy Ebosele’s volley, and although Wilson Isidor equalized shortly after the break, Tom Dele-Bashiru’s late penalty secured the win for Watford.
Cleverley praised his players for successfully managing Sunderland’s pressure in the second half and for limiting significant scoring chances. Notably, it was the first time in six matches that Watford had not conceded an early goal, a positive sign for Cleverley.
“It was a tale of two halves,” he said. “I thought we were excellent in the first half, and then we had to absorb some pressure in the second half without giving away too many big chances. We showed real character at the end. It’s tough to regain momentum once it swings against you after conceding, but Kwadwo Baah deserves credit, as do the supporters for helping us through.”
Cleverley highlighted the team’s resilience, noting their unbeaten record at home, stating, “We’re 10 unbeaten here now. Even when we don’t play well, we’re still getting results, which is encouraging. Our first-half performance deserved the win. Defensively, we were solid today.”
He also commended the experienced duo of Angelo Ogbonna and Moussa Sissoko for their contributions, with Ogbonna making his league debut.
“Angelo has been fantastic—exactly what we needed,” Cleverley said. “He brings the Italian-style defending and focus that we’ve missed. We need to manage his workload since he hasn’t had a pre-season, but I’m thrilled with his performance.”
Cleverley concluded by praising both players as leaders on the pitch, particularly noting Sissoko’s vocal presence: “I could still hear Moussa’s voice rallying the team, and his performance was excellent today.”
