T. Deeney has scored a goal for Watford! Assist by W. Hughes.
Three minutes have been added on at the end of the second half. Cardiff are pressing hard for a second goal but it is fair to say that it is game over, despite Bamba pulling one back.
Hughes, who has been a real threat throughout, had no route through on goal so he decided to lay it off for Deeney to fire home.
GOOOOOAAALLL!!! CARDIFF 1-5 WATFORD! Deeney rounds off the scoring in added time with another simple finish. Gray prods the ball into the path of Hughes, who profits from a fortunate bounce off the legs of Bennett to tee up Deeney in front of goal.
90'
A good passage of play from Cardiff, seeing the likes of Paterson, Zohore and Arter link up in the attacking third, ends with Paterson smashing the ball high into the stands from about 40 yards out. Terrible attempt, that!
88'
Mendez-Laing bursts away from Cathcart and gets a cross into the middle. Quina is well positioned to help it behind for another Cardiff corner.
86'
A. Gray enters the game and replaces Deulofeu.
Deulofeu, who scored three of Watford's goals and set up the other, makes way for Gray with four minutes of normal time to play.
85'
C. Paterson gets yellow.
Paterson drags Quina to the ground and is shown a yellow card. Cardiff supporters enjoyed that rugby-style challenge.
83'
It was actually a very good save from Foster to push Bamba's downward header onto the post in the lead-up to Cardiff's goal. The centre-back did not give up on it, though, and he is now City's joint-top scorer in the Premier League this season.
82'
S. Bamba has scored a goal for Cardiff City!
GOOOAAALLL!!! CARDIFF 1-4 WATFORD! From pretty much out of nowhere, Cardiff bag themselves a consolation goal. Bamba is the man who scores it, firing the ball past Deeney and Foster on the line after the pair combined to keep out his initial effort from the corner.
80'
The challenge for Watford now, seemingly content with four goals, is to keep a third clean sheet in a row in the league. That should not be too difficult as Cardiff have been poor in an attacking sense since Deulofeu took control of the match.
79'
T. Cleverley enters the game and replaces É. Capoue.
Capoue has had a very good game in the Watford engine room. Gracia decides to rest one of his key men for the final 10 minutes, though, with Cleverley taking over alongside Doucoure.
Minute
Description
75'
DRAGGED WIDE! Cardiff are all over the place, as they have been since Watford's second goal hit the back of the net. The hosts again give away possession and Hughes slips in Deulofeu, who drags the ball wide. He will be disappointed with that finish.
73'
T. Deeney has scored a goal for Watford! Assist by Deulofeu.
This was good improvisation from Deulofeu. He would have liked to have taken on the shot himself, but Etheridge closed the angle and teeing up Deeney was the right choice.
GOOOAAAALLLL!!! CARDIFF 0-4 WATFORD! Not content with three goals, Deulofeu turns provider by setting up Deeney for Watford's fourth. The Spaniard is played through on goal by a perfectly-weighted pass from Capoue, but a heavy touch prevents him from taking on the shot himself and he squares the ball to Deeney for a simple finish.
72'
Watford are knocking the ball around with ease now, each pass being greeted by cheers from their travelling supporters. The visitors have moved up to 80 per cent in terms of possession and it is they who are looking the more likely to score the game's fourth goal.
71'
Domingos Quina enters the game and replaces R. Pereyra.
K. Zohorè enters the game and replaces O. Niasse.
Gracia makes his first change of the contest, bringing on Quina - a scorer in Watford's 3-2 win over Cardiff a couple of months ago - for Pereyra.
Zohore, who bagged his first goal of the season at Southampton a couple of weeks ago, is brought on for Niasse in a straight swap up top.
69'
Capoue clatters into Niasse to bail out midfield team-mate Doucoure as his slip nearly proved costly. Cardiff have not been able to put together any attacking moves since Watford's quickfire double, and it looks as though Warnock will make another change in the next couple of minutes.
67'
N. Mendez-Laing enters the game and replaces J. Ralls.
Mendez-Laing is brought on for Ralls with Cardiff three goals down. The hosts also trailed by three goals at Vicarage Road in December's reverse meeting.
65'
Watford could easily add another goal or two to their tally at this rate. Cardiff are throwing bodies forward, not learning their lesson from the last two goals they conceded. Deulofeu in particular is proving a real threat, but the hosts just about manage to clear their lines on this occasion.
63'
Deulofeu has scored a goal for Watford! Assist by É. Capoue.
Capoue did well to look up and spot Deulofeu in acres of space after turning over possession. That is surely game over, despite there being around half an hour to play.
GOOOOAAALLL!!! CARDIFF 0-3 WATFORD! Deulofeu punishes Cardiff to complete his hat-trick. Arter plays the ball straight to Capoue and he sends Deulofeu clear. The Spaniard rounded Etheridge for his second goal, but he decides to go with a cheeky dinked finish this time.
61'
Deulofeu has scored a goal for Watford! Assist by A. Doucouré.
VITAL BLOCK! Peterson curls the ball in from the right and Hoilett would have had a tap-in if not for some brilliant defending from Mariappa, who gets there first to turn it behind for a corner.
Doucoure was the player who got his head to Bennett's delivery, sending Deulofeu clear. The ex-Barcelona ace raced past Manga and kept his composure in front of goal.
GOOOOAAALLL!!! CARDIFF 0-2 WATFORD! This is somewhat cruel on Cardiff as they concede a second goal against the run of play. With the home side well on top, Bennett's free-kick is cleared by the first man and Deulofeu leads a one-man counter than ends with him rounding Etheridge and rolling the ball into an empty net.
59'
There is a real end-to-end feel to the match now as Cardiff know they have to go for it in search of a leveller. The momentum is with Cardiff, though Bennett's cross from the left is disappointing and cut out by the first man.
58'
SIMPLE SAVE! Bennett drifts into a central position and is urged to shoot from 25 yards. He does exactly that, getting plenty of power behind the low shot but hitting it right at Foster, who cushions it into his chest.
56'
J. Hoilett enters the game and replaces J. Murphy.
With Cardiff on top and their fans behind them, Warnock bring on Hoilett for Murphy in a like-for-like change out wide.
55'
R. Pereyra gets yellow.
The ball falls nicely for Pereyra to strike, but he lets it bounce and Niasse gets a boot to it. The Watford attacker drags his opponent back to stop the counter from developing.
54'
Deeney exchanges passes with Hughes and fires a deflected shot wide of Etheridge's goal. Prior to that, the flag stayed down after Deulofeu had raced behind, but he could not cushion the ball after getting to it ahead of the Cardiff keeper.
53'
Warnock will be encouraged by his side's display in the opening eight minutes of the second half. Murphy goes around Janmaat, who perhaps expected him to go down the line, and he clips the ball onto the chest of Niasse. The striker is unable to turn after bringing it under control.
49'
Paterson helps the ball on to Niasse with a mishit shot, but the striker is flagged for offside. That appears to be another incorrect call that goes against Cardiff.
48'
Mariappa plays the ball back to Foster but Murphy nearly gets to it first. Foster boots it against the Cardiff winger and ball goes out of play - that could have ended a lot worse from Watford's perspective.
47'
Cardiff's player had plenty to say to the referee Simon Hooper as they made their way back onto the field. The officials would have seen Janmaat's challenge on Murphy back over and they will know it was the wrong call.
46'
Watford, leading through Deulofeu's strike midway through the first half, get us back underway at the Cardiff City Stadium!
45' +3
HALF-TIME: CARDIFF 0-1 WATFORD
45' +2
Paterson squeezes in a cross from the right and Niasse should be doing better with it eight yards from goal. Credit to Mariappa for getting tight to the Everton loanee, preventing his opponent from getting a shot away.
45'
The boos continue to ring around the Cardiff City Stadium as we enter two minutes of added-on time. Cardiff have been denied a certain penalty.
44'
Bamba does brilliantly to defend the danger and carry the ball forward, before winning a free-kick from Doucoure. The set-piece is met by Paterson, who tends to win most aerially balls, but Foster gets to it ahead of Niasse.
41'
Watford's one-touch passing is proving too much for Cardiff to deal with. Paterson barges into Hughes to concede a free-kick in a dangerous position. Arter can consider himself lucky as he avoided a booking for kicking the ball away.
40'
Watford are sloppy in possession and Arter has space to run into. The ball is worked out to the left but Janmaat spots the danger and gets across.
39'
There is a bit of a lull in the game now as the two sides cancel each other out. A long ball into the Cardiff box is met by Deeney, but he can neither knock it down for a team-mate nor find the target from 12 yards.
37'
Hughes catches Bamba and a free-kick is awarded to Cardiff. The ball goes forward and Arter, seemingly spotting Foster a couple of yards off his line, tries to catch out the Watford keeper with a lob from 35 yards. The ball ends exactly where you would expect it to - in the stands!
35'
Niasse does the hard work by bringing the ball under control, but he then loses possession when put under a little pressure high up the field. This has been Cardiff's best spell on the ball - can they make it count?
33'
Morrison launches a long throw into the box but Watford again stand firm at the back. Cardiff have not been able to create much of anything since falling a goal behind, being restricted to shots from distance and crosses from wide areas.
31'
Ralls plays the free-kick short to Arter, who nearly slips in Bennett. Watford defend the danger well, as they have done pretty much throughout the opening half an hour.
30'
É. Capoue gets yellow.
Niasse cuts inside and breaks away from a couple of Watford players, but his heels are clipped by Capoue and the referee Simon Hooper reaches into his pocket for the first time today.
28'
ETHERIDGE DENIES DEENEY! Deeney has the option of slotting the ball through for Doucoure for a one-on-one, but he instead takes on the shot from 20 yards. A good shot it is, too, one that requires a good save from Etheridge in the Cardiff goal, but that was ultimately the wrong option from the Watford skipper.
26'
Doucoure catches Ralls on the leg and Cardiff win a free-kick. The home side have managed two shots on target so far, testing Foster either side of Deulofeu's strike 18 minutes in.
24'
Cardiff have looked a little rattled over the past few minutes, but they are now seeing a bit more of the ball. Bennett, like Deeney and Hughes for the Watford goal, refuses to let go of the ball but he eventually loses out on the edge of the opposition box.
22'
That save from Foster to keep out Niasse looks even bigger now as Watford scored less than a couple of minutes later. The visitors win a corner, which Masina sends into the side-netting of the Cardiff goal.
20'
SAVE! Almost an instant response from Cardiff as Murphy powers a shot on target, which was too central to get the better of Foster. Either side of the Watford keeper and it may have been a different story.
18'
Deulofeu has scored a goal for Watford! Assist by T. Deeney.
This is a classic case of persistence paying off for Deeney as both he and Hughes refused to give up on the ball and it fell nicely to Deulofeu to do the rest.
GOOOAAALLLL!!! CARDIFF 0-1 WATFORD! Deulofeu makes the breakthrough for the visitors with a first-time finish into the bottom corner. Deeney and Hughes bundle the ball past a couple of players and Deulofeu catches it nicely to get the better of Etheridge.
14'
Deeney hits the wall from the free-kick and Cardiff look to counter through Niasse. The winger makes good ground down the left but he loses control of the ball and, when it is eventually played through for Murphy, his team-mate is a yard offside.
12'
Hughes slips the ball through for Deulofeu and the forward's shot is kept out by Etheridge, though the referee had already halted play for Bamba's challenge on Deeney. That would have been a contentious one had Deulofeu tucked the ball home.
11'
OVER! Deeney and Janmaat link up inside the box but the latter's side-foot volley flies over the crossbar. Watford are having plenty of joy down Cardiff's left in the early stages of the match.
9'
NEARLY! Janmaat's cross from the right is missed by Bamba and Morrison, but Pereyra cannot react in time and the ball ricochets off his body and out of play. Poor defending from the home side.
8'
Full debutant Bacuna gets a shot away, which hits team-mate Paterson on its way behind for a goal-kick. Had Paterson not got in the way, Watford goalkeeper Foster would have had a save to make there.
6'
Gracia will be pleased with the way that his side have started to keep hold of the ball. Cardiff are not known for their possession and they are happy to let their opponents knock it around in these early stages. A clearance from Etheridge goes into touch.
4'
Deulofeu tries to get a cross into the middle, but the ball comes off returning Cardiff skipper Morrison and goes behind for a corner, which goes short and ultimately comes to little.
2'
Urged on by his supporters, Bennett gets forward from left-back and tries to pick out Niasse. The pass has a little too much on it and Foster gets to it first.
1'
Following a minute's silence to mark the passing of former Cardiff players Matthew Brazier and Brian Edgley, we are underway in the Welsh capital!
Hello and welcome to our live coverage of the Premier League meeting between Cardiff City and Watford at the Cardiff City Stadium.
Cardiff have defeated south coast pair Bournemouth and Southampton in their last two matches and are now seeking a third top-flight victory on the spin for the first time since February 1961. Having been written off by many prior to a ball being kicked upon their promotion to the Premier League, City can put four points between themselves and the relegation zone with victory in front of their supporters today.
Watford have also defied expectations this season as they are eighth in the table and can climb a place above Wolves with another away triumph today. Javi Gracia's side beat Everton 1-0 in their most recent top-flight match and they also made it through to the quarter-finals of the FA Cup with victory over QPR this time last week. They are now aiming to keep their momentum going by completing their first league double over Cardiff since the 2005-06 campaign.
Cardiff subs: Nathaniel Mendez-Laing, Greg Cunningham, Bobby Decordova-Reid, Kenneth Zohore, Alex Smithies, Junior Hoilett, Aron Gunnarsson.
CARDIFF XI (4-1-4-1): Neil Etheridge; Bruno Ecuele Manga, Sean Morrison (c), Sol Bamba, Joe Bennett; Harry Arter; Callum Paterson, Leandro Bacuna, Joe Ralls, Josh Murphy; Oumar Niasse.
Watford subs: Ken Sema, Marc Navarro, Heurelho Gomes, Domingos Quina, Tom Cleverley, Miguel Britos, Andre Gray.
WATFORD XI (4-4-2): Ben Foster; Daryl Janmaat, Adrian Mariappa, Craig Cathcart, Adam Masina; Will Hughes, Abdoulaye Doucoure, Etienne Capoue, Roberto Pereyra; Gerard Deulofeu, Troy Deeney (c).
The two teams are now out on the field at the Cardiff City Stadium and we are moments away from kick-off.
Warnock has every right to be angry at the midway point as his side could easily have been on level terms. There was not a great deal between the sides in the opening 45 minutes, even if Watford did have 67 per cent of the ball, and it is unlikely that either manager will make any changes for the start of the second half.
Cardiff, who risk dropping into the relegation zone later this weekend, must quickly pick themselves up as they play host to Everton in four days' time. Watford remain on course for European football next season, meanwhile, and they will be full of confidence for their trip to Liverpool next Wednesday.
Thanks for joining our coverage today. Until next time, goodbye!
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