FA Cup Football – 30 January 2016

Sanchez Flores did make seven changes to his starting line-up, while Forest boss Dougie Freedman elected to make eight, but the Spaniard reiterated the FA Cup’s value to his squad after they progressed in front of 3,771 visiting supporters.

Winger Ryan Mendes suffered a knock during the goalless draw with QPR but should be involved.

Britt Assombalonga (knee), Andy Reid (groin), Matty Fryatt (Achilles), Henri Lansbury (ankle) and Daniel Pinillos (knee) will all remain on the sidelines, with only Assombalonga now on the road to recovery.

Meanwhile, Watford have been drawn to face Leeds United in the 5th round of the Cup.

“There are a lot of teams in the Premier League with a lot of history so if they decide to come here it is awesome for us”.

Watford head coach Quique Sanchez Flores insists he is taking the FA Cup seriously as his team prepare for a fourth-round tie at Nottingham Forest on Saturday.

Amrabat was proving to be the game’s most lively player, firing in a volley from the edge of the box which this time De Vries had to palm to safety with the first real stop of the match.

Flores added: “We respect this competition a lot, it is a very historic competition in England”.

“We know they are ready to play”.

As the final whistle blew, the Watford side celebrated in jubilation, as the Forest players were greeted with disappointment and empathy from the fans who will be wondering what could have been had Ward put away his chance in the first-half.

Costel Pantilimon was another Watford player to be handed his debut in the East Midlands, and his first piece of business in a Hornets shirt finally arrived late on when keeping out Eric Lichaj’s speculative shot.

“It’s very important to support the players, at the moment we need these players”.

The Hornets defeated Nottingham Forest 1-0 courtesy of Super Eagles’ Odion Ighalo’s 88th minute strike, which propelled the English Premier League side to the next round of the competition.