Watford 0-0

Independent:
Blues extend unbeaten run to 10 games in goalless draw
Watford 0 Chelsea 0

Kevin Garside Vicarage Road

A point at Watford is no longer to be sniffed at. This was a match Chelsea might have lost earlier in the campaign. There were few flares let off in a gritty, hard-fought encounter, and you know who excels on occasions such as these.

Yes, the name of John Terry was the one on the lips of the Chelsea faithful as the clock ran down, a typically aggressive burst out of defence in an attempt to rouse his team one more time. Terry had his hands full all night keeping Odion Ighalo and Troy Deeney quiet, but never took a backward step, the fallout from his contract poker game having nil impact on him.

Elsewhere, interim coach Guus Hiddink would have learned far more from this yeoman arm wrestle than the parade through Milton Keynes in the FA Cup on Sunday. If he does persuade his masters to retain the services of Terry, Hiddink will have done the club a service.

If the likes of Willian and Oscar get itchy feet, however, that would be a different matter. If Chelsea are to feature at the top of the table next season, both would benefit from whatever Terry had last night.

Though out of the equation at the top, Chelsea might yet have a significant hand in the coronation with their final three home fixtures of the season against Manchester City, Tottenham and Leicester, in that order, the latter closing the campaign. Of the present top five, only Arsenal do not have to face Chelsea again. Manchester United are first up on Sunday.

The Premier League has provided rich and unpredictable entertainment this season but few would argue it is the better for Chelsea’s improbable decline, though we acknowledge the dramatic value of Jose Mourinho’s fall.

Watford’s station as top-10 campaigners is further proof of the growing levelling-out in the Premier League, as is the hitherto modest club spending millions on five players in the January transfer window, including two quickly farmed out on loan to Granada.

The charismatic Spaniard at the helm, Quique Sanchez Flores, hardly knew whether disappointment or elation was the appropriate response to occupying 10th place ahead of Chelsea’s visit. At one point his team threatened to emulate Leicester’s trajectory.

Then again, at the outset none would have been surprised if Watford experienced the lot of Aston Villa, Sunderland and Newcastle. Irrespective of last night’s result Watford were guaranteed to remain above their august opponents, which neatly sums up this mad cabaret.
Hiddink made four changes from the Chelsea side that whupped MK Dons in the FA Cup on Sunday, the most significant of which was Eden Hazard being withdrawn to the bench.

The game was six minutes old when Terry, at the centre of yet more political manoeuvring at Stamford Bridge, was drawn into the match for the first time, yielding a corner with a block on the dangerous Ighalo. You wondered if Terry might not have been better served keeping his powder dry until after this assignment given the potential for embarrassment at the feet of Ighalo. Then again, heroic resistance was always his credo.

Watford display all the features of an ambitious, upwardly mobile team, organised in the current fashion into a compact shape with explosive elements up front. Ighalo, Deeney, Jose Manuel Jurado and Étienne Capoue were all a persistent nuisance in the opening period.

One mazy dribble by Jurado in the 27th minute was a case in point and led to a stinging shot from Capoue that drew a smart save from Thibaut Courtois. It was the Belgian’s second intervention within minutes after being tested by a Sebastian Prödl header from a corner.

Chelsea’s first real crack at goal came in the 32nd minute on the break, Diego Costa racing on to a speculative long ball. The Spaniard had plenty to do to get a shot away, and though he won a corner, Chelsea made nothing of it. The longer the half went on the more Chelsea pursued the aerial route, seeking out the willing Costa.

The tactic reflected Watford’s dominance of the middle of the park at the expense of the largely decorative Willian and Oscar. Ben Watson deserves special mention in this regard, a critical cog at the base of the Watford midfield who did much to anchor the defensive effort.

The half ended in unnecessary acrimony with Costa at the heart of it, taking an illegal blow from Juan Carlos Paredes after first bringing his opponent to the ground. The usual posturing ensued, sundry quasi-hardmen from each side throwing their weight about before both Costa and Paredes were booked.

Hiddink would have told his team they would need to improve to maintain their upswing in momentum, and though they opened the second half with a speculative effort from Jon Obi Mikel that required the attention of a back-pedalling Heurelho Gomes, Watford moved with greater fluency and purpose.

Costa was the all-too-obvious out ball for Chelsea while in the service of Watford Ighalo and Deeney offered twice the threat. With Cesc Fabregas continuing to labour in the Chelsea midfield and Nemanja Matic and Mikel  flatlining, Costa had insufficient support behind him.
Hiddink recognised the problem and with 20 minutes left sent out Hazard for Matic. It had increasingly become a night for keeping the mistakes to a minimum and hoping talent would win out at some point. It was not to be for either side.

===============

Telegraph:

Watford 0 Chelsea 0
Guus Hiddink's side frustrated despite unbeaten run stretching to nine games
Visitors are held to a goalless draw despite Diego Costa's best efforts

By  Jason Burt
Chelsea just about won this one on points – with some pushing and shoving involving Diego Costa thrown in – but they did not take the points in what developed into a full-blooded, bone-jarring encounter which Watford certainly did not deserve to lose either.

The storylines revolved around John Terry – this being the first game for the Chelsea captain since he announced he expected to quit the club in the summer after not being offered a new contract – and, inevitably, the brooding, bullying Costa who was sinned against more than sinning given the laughable theatrics of defender Juan Carlos Paredes. Watford captain Troy Deeney summed up the clash, which rumbled around half-time, with the word “pathetic”. He was right.

In the cold light of day Chelsea are now 16 points off fourth place with just 14 Premier League matches left. It means they have to gain a point a game more for the rest of the season than either Arsenal or Tottenham Hotspur to finish in the top four. And that is surely not going to happen. The champions are relinquishing their title and a place in the Champions League also - unless they go and win it.

On the one hand Guus Hiddink has now, over two caretaker spells, after his first period in charge in 2009, taken charge of 32 matches and lost just one. That is phenomenal. He is unbeaten in nine games since returning to Chelsea at Christmas. On the other hand he has presided over seven league matches and won just two of them, drawing five.

That is not to blame Hiddink. He has done well, very well – again - and this was a very different Chelsea than the one which drew 2-2 at home to Watford in his first game back, on Boxing Day, when their fragility was all too evident. Here they were far more robust, a lot more driven, a lot more dangerous.

This was feisty but it was also friends reunited. Hiddink was denied by Heurelho Gomes, his goalkeeper when the Dutchman was coach of PSV Eindhoven, with two outstanding late saves from the Brazilian. Watford manager Quique Sanchez Flores was moved to help try and calm Costa, who he had managed at Atletico Madrid, as the striker tangled with Paredes.

Hiddink claimed the Ecuadorean had hit Costa on the back of the head. The Chelsea striker then appeared to push Paredes on the back of his head – with the Watford player then embarrassingly clutching his face as he hit the turf. Costa held his own face. Onlookers, in truth, felt like holding their own faces as well.

It was pretty unseemly stuff and was, in fairness, dealt with well by referee Mike Dean while Costa – who had also pushed another defender, Sebastian Prodl, to the ground in an earlier incident – eventually gathered himself sufficiently to perform far better in a second-half that Chelsea came into stronger and stronger.

At the final whistle there were cheers from the Watford fans who recognize the value of a courageous performance and a point that took their team up to ninth in the table – and four points ahead of Chelsea still – in what has been an outstandingly convincing return to the top-flight.

For long periods in the first-half it felt like they would have even more to celebrate as Idion Ighalo ran Terry ragged – his quick feet, trickery and directness was a problem – and Deeney provided the muscle as well as the guile. It is, and has been all season, a potent combination with Etienne Capoue adding strong running support from midfield while Jose Manuel Jurado ran at the Chelsea defence.

Chances were at a premium, however. But Ighalo should have given Watford the lead when Jose Holebas broke down the left and delivered a cross that dropped over Terry, who missed the flight, and in front of Kurt Zouma. Ighalo was in-between the pair, and, surely he would score. But his header was mis-timed, maybe Terry’s jump had put him off, and the opportunity went. There was a powerful header from Prodl held by Thibaut Courtois who then did even better to push away a fierce rising shot from Capoue after he was set up by Jurado’s dancing feet across the edge of the area.
Chelsea were reeling but then Oscar’s long ball forward caught out the Watford defence with Costa running clear to twist and turn and send a low cross-shot that deflected off the recovering Craig Cathcart to fly only narrowly wide.

That fight-back almost spilled over – Costa and Paredes clashed – and the second-half became even more attritional. No quarter was given. Gomes had to react alertly to tip over a looping, deflected shot from John Obi Mikel, Oscar side-footed just wide from close-range after being set up by Costa and, at the other end, Deeney volleyed low and just past the post.

Hiddink decided to go for it. He pushed on Eden Hazard, a substitute as he continues his recovery from injury, and there was suddenly more purpose to Chelsea and more threat. “Attack, attack, attack,” chanted the visiting fans and their team did. Oscar forced a fine parry from Gomes as he drifted inside and fired a powerful right-foot shot before Hazard’s run was picked out by Willian. He fed Branislav Ivanovic whose effort was superbly turned around the post by Gomes who, finally, excelled that by thwarting Costa who headed powerfully from even closer to goal. It remained eventful and goalless.

===================

Guardian:

Watford’s Heurelho Gomes flexes to keep Chelsea at bay
Watford 0 - 0 Chelsea
Dominic Fifield at Vicarage Road

John Terry performed his customary routine at the final whistle here, striding into the Watford half and towards those upstanding in one corner of the Vicarage Road stand to applaud the chanting of his name and thump the badge on his chest. The centre-half believes he will be denied the “fairytale ending” of retiring as a Chelsea player and, unless both parties can find reconciliation, every game between now and the summer will feel like a farewell. On this evidence, the sense of anti-climax will end up shared by club and captain.
 
This was a 10th match in all competitions without defeat for the champions since José Mourinho was sacked in December but, confronted by a Watford side who simply would not wilt, it still ended up feeling wasteful.

The visitors were disjointed, playing in fits and starts and offering only flashes of the fluency which had dismantled MK Dons in the FA Cup on Sunday. Those Championship opponents were naively obliging. Watford, newly risen from the second tier, are anything but these days and Quique Sánchez Flores’ more streetwise team discomforted their visitors throughout the first period. They are the side who now loiter in the top half of the table while Chelsea peer up at them from below
.
Only in the latter stages did Guus Hiddink’s team really threaten a third away win in succession, when Heurelho Gomes shrugged himself awake to block from Branislav Ivanovic and, brilliantly, claw away Diego Costa’s header in the last few minutes. Hiddink had worked with the Brazilian at PSV Eindhoven and bemoaned the goalkeeper’s heroics in opposition. He was less complimentary about Juan Carlos Paredes’ theatrics in first-half stoppage time, Watford’s Ecuadorian right-back rolling around clutching his face after brushing with the occasion’s predictable pantomime villain, Costa, in front of the dugouts.

“We were very close, it was 10 yards from our bench, and Paredes punched Diego in his back and then they stumbled,” said Hiddink. “Then Paredes brought his hand to his head, and Diego had been nowhere near his head. They stumbled. It was provocation to get someone off the pitch. Happily the referee and the assistant saw it and didn’t fall for it because there was no way Diego was close to his face. This is a man’s game.”

Both players were booked, though Paredes can also expect a dressing down from his club captain back at the training ground in London Colney on Thursday. “He didn’t help himself,” said Troy Deeney. “It was ‘soft’, that’s the best word to describe it. Where I grew up, and the way I grew up playing football, people would get kicked for rolling around like that. It was all a bit pathetic. But it’s new-age football. There’s a little touch and everyone’s rolling around. It’s just handbags. In Sunday League that wouldn’t happen because you’d be laughed at. I don’t like to see it, to be honest, and we’ll have a word with Paredes on our side.”

It was that kind of game, a spluttering stalemate crying out for a flash of inspiration from Eden Hazard or Odion Ighalo, Oscar or José Manuel Jurado. They all offered tasters of their quality but too much of it was lost amid the stodge of midfield.
 
The hosts could consider two draws with the reigning champions this term as reason for satisfaction, Flores describing most aspects of their performance as “amazing” in the aftermath while admitting taking Costa to one side at the end “to tell him I love him”. He had coached the young Brazilian, since turned Spain international, when they were at Atlético Madrid. The majority in the crowd preferred to heckle Costa, riled by the aggression which he has made his trademark but thankful he had seen his first-half effort deflected wide by Craig Cathcart.

Watford were not afraid to muscle their way into opponents as well, with Deeney driving Chelsea’s full-backs into their shells and Ighalo denied from close range by César Azpilicueta’s block from José Holebas’ fine centre. Thibaut Courtois thwarted Sebastian Prödl and Étienne Capoue, yet they were stretched in the latter stages and relieved by the final whistle.

“You have to compare us to how the team were when we came in,” added Hiddink. “It had been a difficult half-year but, step by step, we’re getting back to how we like to play.”
That is proving a slow process, despite the unbeaten sequence, and the top six remain a distant 10 points away. For now, Watford continue to hold the higher ground.

===============

Mail:
Watford 0-0 Chelsea
Diego Costa fails to inspire Blues in goalless draw as Guus Hiddink's side continue unbeaten run

By Matt Barlow for the Daily Mail 

For a few minutes at the very end, Eden Hazard came off the bench and offered a flourish, a flash of colour as the Belgian looked something like the superstar he was last season.    

But that was that. There proved to be no way past Heurelho Gomes, the brilliant Watford goalkeeper, who played for Guus Hiddink at PSV Eindhoven, and for the rest of it, this was a rather tedious affair.      
Caution gripped two teams in search lost form and the Chelsea fans borrowed a chant from those at Manchester United.

'Attack, attack, attack,' they roared as the game drifted along. Until that point, it had been most notable for another tantrum from storm-tossed striker Diego Costa.

Chelsea are unbeaten in 10 games since the exit of Jose Mourinho, but still disjointed, lacking balance and without back-to-back victories since last season, and not the team they were.
This point does little to help Guus Hiddink's unlikely quest for a late charge towards the top four. They languish in 13th, nearer the relegation zone than the Champions League places.

'We are disappointed,' said Hiddink. 'We would have loved to have three points we thought we deserved. I didn't like what Gomes did. It would have been a big reward to win this after the wins against Arsenal and in the FA Cup.

'We knew it would be difficult to get to fourth place. Now it's very difficult. We probably need 3.1 points from each game.'
Watford were more satisfied with another point to the survival fund. 'We are very happy,' said Quique Sanchez Flores, who saw his team start well, but they were under pressure at the end.

Diego Costa has improved his play but his behaviour hasn't changed a bit. Referee Mike Dean needed to watch Costa throughout the first half, especially off the ball.
After a clash with defender Sebastian Prodl, Costa pushed the Watford player to the floor. A clear foul and Dean spoke to the striker.
Just before half time there was a bizarre clash between Juan Carlos Paredes and Costa. First Costa seemed to invent contact by the defender and threw himself to the ground.

Dean played on but did stop play when Paredes threw himself to the ground, holding his face after Costa went past him. Replays showed no contact from Costa and Dean showed common sense by cautioning both players for unsporting behaviour.
Common sense from the referee which was clearly lacking from the players.

Odion Ighalo gave John Terry problems in the first half with his quick feet and turn of pace, but the Chelsea skipper got to grips with him and celebrated another clean sheet.
He went to the fans at the final whistle to tap his chest and exchange mutual respect.

Terry's name was sung loudly by Chelsea supporters on his first appearance since revealing that he would not be offered an extension to his contract and expects to leave at the end of the season.
There is no question where the fans stand on this one. He is one of them. So too Costa, who led the line in his usual combative style.

First there was a tussle with Sebastian Prodl, who crashed to the floor without much encouragement. Referee Mike Dean settled for a quiet word with Costa and Prodl was booked, moments later, for a lazy trip on Oscar.
Costa engaged again with Juan Carlos Paredes just before the interval right under the noses of the managers.

In the course of a few seconds, both players had rolled around on the turf, complaining to anyone who would listen, gesticulating wildly and both were booked amid exaggerated pleas of innocence.
'Nothing new, nothing special, nothing different,' said Flores. 'I understand Costa because I managed Costa. In every single play he wants contact. But nothing happened.'

Hiddink thought differently, and he accused Paredes. 'Paredes punched Diego in his back and they stumbled,' said the Chelsea boss. 'Then Paredes brought his hands to his head. This is provocation from their side to get someone off the pitch.'

Troy Deeney, Watford's captain, probably summed it up best. 'It's New Age football,' said Deeney. 'One little touch and everyone's rolling around. It's handbags. In the Sunday League you'd be laughed at. I don't like to see it and we'll have a word with Paredes on our side.'

Pathetic as it was, it actually injected some passion into a sluggish 45 minutes devoid of clear chances.
With John Obi Mikel and Nemanja Matic deep in midfield, Hiddink's team lacked creativity, and Willian was subdued until Hazard came on, late in the game.
Watford were more ambitious. Ighalo missed a good chance with a header, and Thibaut Courtois made strong saves to deny Prodl, Ighalo and Etienne Capoue.

Chelsea's first glimpse of goal, and it came from a long ball, launched out of defence by Oscar towards Costa, who twisted and shot on the turn only to see it deflected wide.
Oscar became more influential after the interval, and went closer when he nudged wide a cross from Costa having deceived Watford's back line with a dart to the near post.

Still there was little pattern to the game. No sooner did Chelsea muster some positive possession than they seemed vulnerable at the back. The perfect balance has eluded them this season.
Deeney slammed a volley wide from the 20 yards, and Jose Holebas cut into the penalty area on a bustling foray from left-back only to lose all composure and crash the ball into the side-netting.

As the Chelsea supporters started to chant for Hazard to be introduced, Oscar danced inside from the left and forced a full-length save from Gomes.
Hiddink must have heard them. Hazard was sent on in the 72nd minute in place of Matic, and made an impact. There was a jinking run and low pass, cut back to set up Branislav Ivanovic.
Gomes responded a fabulous reflex save, pushing the effort wide. The Brazilian 'keeper made another brave stop at the feet of Hazard and then, his most eye-catching contribution, an acrobatic spring to his right to keep out a header from Costa which looked to be destined for the top corner.
'Amazing,' said Flores. 'This is our Heurelho. I love him.'

MATCH FACTS, PLAYER RATINGS AND PREMIER LEAGUE TABLE BY ADAM SHERGOLD AT VICARAGE ROAD 

WATFORD (4-3-2-1): Gomes 7.5; Paredes 6.5 (Nyom 67, 6), Prodl 7, Cathcart 7, Holebas 6.5; Capoue 6.5 (Suarez 86, 6), Watson 6.5, Behrami 6; Jurado 7 (Abdi 63, 6); Deeney (c) 7, Ighalo 7
Substitutes not used: Pantilimon (GK); Amrabat, Guedioura, Anya
Booked: Prodl, Paredes

Manager: Quique Sanchez Flores 7
CHELSEA (4-2-3-1): Courtois 7; Ivanovic 6, Zouma 6.5, Terry (c) 6, Azpilicueta 6; Mikel 6, Matic 7 (Hazard 72, 6); Willian 7, Fabregas 6, Oscar 7; Diego Costa 6.5
Substitutes not used: Begovic (GK); Baba, Traore, Kenedy, Cahill, Loftus-Cheek
Booked: Costa

Manager: Guus Hiddink 6
Referee: Mike Dean 7
Attendance: 20,910
Man of the Match: Gomes

=====================

Mirror:
Watford 0-0 Chelsea: Diego Costa huffs and puffs but Hornets earn point - 5 things we learned
  
By Darren Lewis
 
The Spaniard was at his fiery best but couldn't make the crucial difference as Quique Flores' men earned a deserved share of the spoils

Diego Costa huffed and puffed but couldn't blow the Watford house down in a see-saw clash at Vicarage Road.
Both sides struggled to fashion a real gilt-edged opening in a blood and thunder contest under the lights where the fiery Spaniard again took centre stage.

Costa was a constant thorn in the Hornets' side as he hassled and harried throughout earning a yellow card after a bad tempered clash with Juan Carlos Paredes just before the half.
Eden Hazard, a second half substitute, was also bright when he came on but both teams shared the spoils.

Here are five things we learned at Vicarage Road.

1. Chelsea still look a mid-table team

They went into this matches on an unbeaten streak of seven Premier League games. But Watford ran rings around them for much of the first half. How the mighty have fallen.

2. Odion Ighalo looks the kind of striker that Chelsea should after this summer

Quick feet, strength and an unerring eye for goal. Ighalo is already on the Chelsea radar and the Blues could not have had a better scouting report than his performance against them.
He caused them all sorts of problems.

3. Diego Costa continues to be a liability

His brilliance in front of goal is obvious. But he pushed Prodl over early on and he picked up a yellow card for a clash with Paredes.
Just before half time Guus Hiddink had to have a word. That fuse is still too short.

4. The John Terry situation hang over Chelsea for the rest of the season

The travelling fans made their feelings clear about the potential loss of their captain before and during the match.
The next home game at Stamford Bridge will be interesting.

5. Jurado did for Watford what Hazard could have been doing for Chelsea

The Spain midfielder was skilful, direct and at times left Chelsea players on their backsides as he ghosted past them.

He was Watford’s best player.

Player ratings

Watford

Gomes 8
Vulnerable at times but made three outstanding saves late on.
Paredes 6
Booked. Had a real ding dong with Costa.
Cathcart 7
Good display, denied Costa space, good positioning.
Prodl 6
Good header but could have scored. Solid but slow.
Holebas 7
Dangerous crossing from the left full back.
Capoue 7
Saw a fierce shot beaten away by Courtois.
Watson 7
MotM. Has completely reinvented himself. Influential.
Jurado 7
His strong running and pace troubled the Chelsea defence.
Behrami 6
Good work rate, you can see why Flores trusts him.
Deeney 7
Puts in a good shift for the team. Terrific captain.
Ighalo 7
Good pace, movement, quick feet, The real deal.
Substitutes
Abdi, for Jurado, 63 mins, 6
Nyom, for Paredes, 67 mins, 6
Substitutes: Nyom, Suarez, Amrabat, Guedioura, Pantilimon, Anya, Abdi.

Chelsea

Courtois 7
Good saves when Watford were on top. Played well.
Ivanovic 6
Solid defensively, rarely got a chance to get forward.
Zouma 6
His pace getting him the nod over Cahill. He did well again.
Terry 7
The support and backing from Chelsea fans was overwhelming.
Azpilicueta 6
Chelsea’s man in the mask solid at left back.
Mikel 7
Saw a shot deflected just over the crossbar. Solid.
Matic 6
Solid display in midfield, offered little going forward.
Willian 5
Had a quiet game, didn’t look fully fit after a knock.
Fabregas 6
Played further forward but didn’t influence the game enough.
Oscar 6
Played towards the left, missed being in the middle.
Costa 7
His usual self: a real handful who wound up Watford.
Substitutes
Begovic, Baba, Hazard, Traore, Kenedy, Cahill, Loftus-Cheek.


==========================

Express:

Watford 0 - Chelsea 0: Stunning Gomes save denies Costa late winner
HEURELHO GOMES’ superb late save denied Diego Costa a winning goal as Chelsea were held by Watford here at Vicarage Road.
By Joe Short

Gomes sprang to his right to tip wide a Costa header with just three minutes remaining of an entertaining clash.
The goalkeeper also kept out Branislav Ivanovic with a point-black save, while midfielder Oscar put wide a side-footed shot from four yards.
Watford, who dominated the first half, rarely forced Thibaut Courtois into action but they deserved a point for their endeavour.

Guus Hiddink went into the clash seeking a 10th game unbeaten since taking over as interim head coach from Jose Mourinho back in December.
The boss oversaw a 2-2 draw against the Hornets on Boxing Day at Stamford Bridge - a tie that would have yielded three points had midfielder Oscar not fluffed a late penalty.
And Watford showed similar fighting spirit to that displayed in west London in the early stages of this encounter - strike duo Odion Ighalo and Troy Deeney at times outmuscling Chelsea veteran John Terry and Kurt Zouma, an apprentice in comparison to the 35-year-old, at the back.
Terry, who last weekend confirmed Chelsea will not renew his contract this summer, certainly didn’t look out of place in his 476th Premier League appearance.
Unfortunately for Terry, it was his team-mates who struggled in the opening throes to keep apace with the home side.
     
It was almost midway through the opening half that Watford created their first real chance, when a flowing move eventually saw Jose Holebas whip in from the left for Ighalo, who mistimed a free header.
It was a sign of intent, however, and shortly after both Prodl and Etienne Capoue had chances well saved by Courtois in the away goal.
In reply, Diego Costa finally latched on to one of the procession of Chelsea long balls to turn and shoot within the Watford box, only for a stray leg to deflect his effort wide.

Costa, always one to spice up the party, was involved in a spat with Hornets defender Juan Carlos Paredes moments before halftime.
The Spain international went down fairly lightly when backing into the right-back and, in the following phase, Paredes himself hit the turf for nothing more than a brush of the arm.
Watford fans sensed blood but referee Mike Dean rightly kept his cool and booked the pair for their petty behaviour.

If halftime was meant to calm everything down then neither side got the message as both John Obi Mikel and Deeney went close early after the restart, before Oscar passed wide a chance from four yards out.
Chelsea, now on top, pushed for an breakthrough and only a magnificent save from Gomes prevented Ivanovic finishing off Eden Hazard’s cut-back, while Oscar saw a ranged effort parried by the goalkeeper.
And it was Gomes who again came to the rescue at the death when he clawed away Costa’s header from a deep corner.

=====================

Star:

Watford 0 Chelsea 0: Costa frustrated in stalemate at Vicarage Road
THE first date on John Terry’s farewell tour did not exactly rock.

By David Woods

Chelsea’s travelling fans spent most of the last few minutes before kick-off singing the name of the outgoing skipper.
He did not acknowledge it, perhaps deciding it best not to stir things in the first game since his announcement, on Sunday, that he was not getting a new contract from the club.
After that, those fans did not have a great deal to get excited about.
The Blues may be unbeaten in their seven games under Guus Hiddink, but five of them have been draws - meaning ten more points dropped.
Two of the stalemates have now been against Watford, who earned a 2-2 at Stamford Bridge in the Dutchman’s first game in charge.
And the buzzing Hornets went above Stoke into ninth with this point - while Chelsea’s took them up a place to the dizzy heights of 13th!

Watford boss Quique Sanchez Flores was indebted to keeper Heurelho Gomes, who was up to anything the still stuttering champions could muster.
His best saves came in the final 15 minutes. Eden Hazard, who bizarrely was not brought on by Hiddink until the 73rd minute, did not take long to set up Branislav Ivanovic after a neat exchange with Willian.
But the Serb was left with his head in his hands as the Brazilian keeper reacted smartly to keep out his close-range shot at his near post.
Gomes did even better in the 88th minute to dive and claw away Diego Costa’s header, from a Willian cross.
They were a couple of potentially embarrassing moments for 35-year-old Terry early on, but he escaped.
Odion Ighalo was very close to getting a head on a Jose Holebas cross, after Terry failed to cut if out.
The centreback was also outjumped when the resulting corner came over, but Sebastian Prodl sent his header straight at Thibaut Courtois.


After shoving over Prodl in the 12th minute, following some the typical tussling in the box, pantomime baddie Costa was involved in more nonsense just before the break, this time with Juan Carlos Parades.
First Costa went down too easily as they jostled while a throw was being taken. Then the Ecuadorian tumbled when given a little shove by the striker. Rolling around on the ground, he grabbed his face as if hit, it was laughable stuff.
Cue some more playground behviour with others getting involved before ref Mike Dean calmed things and booked the two naughty boys.
Costa was all smiles as he had a chat with Dean before the restart. And he might have scored soon after when Cesc Fabregas sent his bursting clear. But he shot straight at Craig Cathcart.
The ball ricocheted to John Obi Mikel, whose shot hit Ben Watson and had to be tipped over by an alert Gomes.

Troy Deeney volleyed a couple of feet wide at the other end, pouncing on a poor defensive header by Kurt Zouma.
In the 55th minute the champions had their best chance. Costa got to the byline close to goal and found Oscar but, stumbling as he shot, his effort went the wrong side of the near post.
It was typical of the west Londoners’ night. Too often their touch was poor and heavy, particularly Costa’s.
And despite fans shouting “attack, attack, attack” there did not seem a huge amount of urgency.
Perhaps they feel they can send off Terry with a second win in the Champions League - they face PSG in 12 days.
If they want to do that, they’ll need to put on a much livelier show than the one last night at Vicarage Road.