'I like the way he plays, his commitment, all the things he does day by day'
Saturday 22 December 2018 19:06, UK
Watford boss Javi Gracia hailed Troy Deeney's performance during his side's 2-0 win at West Ham.
The Watford captain slammed home a first-half penalty and Gerard Deulofeu added a late second to stun West Ham 2-0 and scupper their bid to win five matches on the spin.
Deeney celebrated his successful spot-kick by punching the corner flag out of the ground in front of the West Ham supporters and fortunately, only one home supporter reacted to the celebration, and the paper cup that was thrown towards the striker fell a long way short.
"What I saw was that after the goal he was running to the corner," Gracia said.
"I don't know what he said. I can't tell you if it's a good or bad celebration, I often see players running into the corner.
"I like the way he plays, his commitment, all the things he does day by day. Like all the players he maybe makes mistakes but he is our captain and an important player for us."
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Deeney's big moment arrived on the half hour, when Robert Pereyra wriggled free in the area only to be caught by a clumsy late challenge from Fabian Balbuena.
Lukasz Fabianski had saved Deeney's previous three penalties but he had no chance with the fourth, the frontman blasting into the top corner.
West Ham had chances to equalise but Michail Antonio twice hit the woodwork before Deulofeu finished them off three minutes from time.
"I think we had a good performance," added Gracia. "We knew playing against West Ham, in this good moment for them, that it would be demanding and it was like we thought.
"I try to keep my smile every day, not only when we win. But today I have a special reason because we have played very well. It was a very good performance here and we got another clean. To win against West Ham is always difficult but, in this situation, after four straight win, it was very special.
"It was good for us to get another clean sheet. It's something good for us. We worked on it through the week and we've got the reward."
