Watford 2 Sheffield Wednesday 1: Wednesday punished for spurned chances

The Hornets were trailing at half-time to Michail Antonio’s 19th-minute opener when Gianfranco Zola introduced the on-loan striker at half-time, and it paid dividends within 20 minutes of the restart.

First he drove home Almen Abdi’s corner in the 53rd minute and then he provided an emphatic finish just after the hour as Zola’s men completed a turnaround.

For Wednesday, it could have been a different story had they not wasted a host of first-half chances.

After leading through Antonio’s ninth of the season, which came courtesy of a Jonathan Bond howler in Watford’s net, the Hornets goalkeeper then produced a string of fine saves to keep the visitors’ lead at one. They were made to pay after the break and back-to-back defeats for the Owls mean they are only three points above the drop zone.

Wednesday proved they were not just making the numbers up as they stole into a 19th-minute lead. Bond as he could not control a wayward backpass by Marco Cassetti and Antonio nipped in to roll home. That gave Jones’s men confidence and they soon could have found themselves even further ahead.

Bond went some way to atoning for his error when produced two fine stops to first deny Llera’s free-kick and then Jeremy Helan’s drive, with Kieran Lee then hitting the rebound wide.

It was chances galore as both sides attacked, with Daniel Pudil testing Chris Kirkland and Joel Ekstrand blazing over for the hosts, while Bond again had to act smart to keep out Wickham and Danny Pugh efforts.

Boss Zola had seen enough and made two changes at half-time, bringing on Forestieri and Nathaniel Chalobah, and it paid dividends. Abdi whipped in a corner, Cassetti flicked it on and Forestieri smashed into the the net.

Deeney then sent in a deep cross, the striker controlled perfectly and drove home into the bottom corner. Wednesday poured forward in search of a leveller as Bond thwarted Leroy Lita’s header at the death.

Watford: Bond, Cassetti, Nosworthy, Ekstrand, Anya (Doyley 82), Battocchio, Abdi, Pudil (Forestieri 46), Hogg (Chalobah 46), Deeney, Vydra. Unused substitutes: Bonham, Yeates, Murray, Geijo.

Sheffield Wednesday: Kirkland, Buxton, Gardner, Llera, Pugh (J Johnson 66), Helan, Lee, Prutton (Lita 76), Coke (Semedo 40), Antonio, Wickham. Unused substitutes: Bywater, Taylor, Madine, McCabe.

Referee: D Sheldrake (Surrey).