Brogna shuts the door on Watford
Luton, bottom and hurting, finally have something to hold: a goalless derby at Vicarage Road that their old boy turned into a wall.
Could the bottom club, beaten in each of the last three derbies, at least stop the bleeding? They could, and it was José Carlos — a Watford player as recently as last season — who helped them do it, standing alongside Carlo Brogna at the heart of a back line that changed shape and, for once, did not crack.
Our preview asked whether Luton's season had anything left to give and whether Watford, sixth and comfortable, would simply roll over them. Neither quite happened. Watford had the ball, 12 shots and a corner count in their favour, but only three on target and not one clear opening; Brogna won his tackles, passed like a man with all afternoon, and took the plaudits. Armando Valencia saved three, one tipped round the post, and when Watford did beat him the woodwork did the rest. Luton hit it too.
The oddity was the shape of it all: Luton abandoning the 4-4-2 of every recent week for a 4-2-3-1, Liam Kremer pushed into midfield and booked early, Alberto and Gabriel González shifted from their usual posts. Watford ended in a 4-5-1 with Gerald Mwale off the bench. A point leaves Luton bottom and Watford sixth. Small mercies, but in a derby, mercy counts.