'They created just the one chance' – Claudio Ranieri feels Watford deserved late equaliser against Newcastle United
Claudio Ranieri felt a point was the least Watford deserved following their late 1-1 draw at Newcastle United on Saturday afternoon.
The Magpies took the lead through Allan Saint-Maximin’s second half strike but failed to build on their advantage as Watford started to apply pressure.
Josh King forced a good save from Martin Dubravka and former Newcastle midfielder Moussa Sissoko shot just wide of the left post before The Hornets finally levelled the score through Joao Pedro’s 87th minute header.
The result keeps Watford a point above the relegation zone while Newcastle remain two points from safety after 20 games.
Following the match, the Watford boss said: “I think [we deserved at least a point].
"In the first half their threat was only on the set pieces – they touched the crossbar and on our counter attack we weren’t so calm to do the best final ball.
Ranieri added: "The second half they created just the one chance from our mistake and we created two or three chances before scoring the goal. I’m very happy because my players combined very well but of course I want more from my players because I know what they can do.
“I can understand after losing six games in a row that they were anxious but I hope this point will give us more electricity and more confidence to believe in ourselves.”
Watford’s next two matches are against Burnley on Tuesday (7:30pm kick-off) and Norwich City on Friday (8pm kick-off). By the time Newcastle play their next league match at Leeds United next Saturday (3pm kick-off), they are guaranteed to be at least three points from safety.