On the second day of Christmas in the English Premier League, the 18th round began with eight matches being played today.
The first match started at 14:30 Lithuanian time at Vicarage Road stadium, where Watford faced Crystal Palace. Sam Allardyce made his debut as the manager of Crystal Palace and earned their first point - the match ended in a draw.
Watford's start to the match was quite unsuccessful - they had to make two mandatory substitutions already in the 14th minute due to injuries to Daryl Janmaat and Valon Behrami.
In the 26th minute, the visitors from London scored the first goal - Yohan Cabaye beat the opponent's goalkeeper after a great run and pass by Andros Townsend.
In the 37th minute, Christian Benteke had a great opportunity to increase the lead to two goals, but he missed the penalty from 11 meters. Heurelho Gomes saved the shot, despite committing the foul on Benteke.
In the second half, Mark Clattenburg awarded another penalty, this time in favor of Crystal Palace. Troy Deeney converted it with a strong shot in the 71st minute to equalize for his team.
Watford is in 10th place with 22 points, while Crystal Palace is in the relegation zone in 17th place.
Result:
Watford 1 - 1 Crystal Palace
26' [0 - 1] Y. Cabaye
71' [1 - 1] T. Deeney (penalty)
37' C. Benteke (Crystal Palace) missed penalty from 11 meters
League table:
