Mark Robins of Coventry City makes a ‘curve ball’ admission as Watford’s manager.

Coventry City’s opponent viewpoint via CoventryLive, as Watford manager Tom Cleverley confesses he was perplexed when he saw the squad sheet.

When Coventry City’s lineup was named an hour before kick-off, Tom Cleverley described it as a “bit of a curve ball” from opposite number Mark Robins.

Watford’s manager named three center-halves – Joel Latibeaudiere, Bobby Thomas, and Liam Kitching – assuming the Sky Blues would match their formation with a wing-back system. But when the game began, it was evident that City would stay with their customary back four, with Latibeaudiere at right-back and Milan van Ewijk moved up to replace the injured Tatsuhiro Sakamoto on the right flank.

The plan was incredibly effective, as City took an early lead through Ellis Simms and generated many more opportunities as they took the game to the home team, who struggled to stop them.

“Coventry actually handed us a bit of a curve ball with their team selection,” confessed the 35-year-old rookie manager after the 1-1 tie. “We assumed it would be a three (at the back) pre-match, and it kind of hit us since we prepared for like for like.

“I lift my hands up. It’s the first time I’ve encountered a team selection that we mistook for something other than what it appeared to be. Normally, clubs in this league are very stable. We train our squad to be consistent and efficient in one system, making it difficult for the opposition to stop us.”

He went on to say, “We expected Van Ewijk and Dasilva to be wing-backs with the three centre-halves, so it was surprising that he was playing higher and Latibeaudiere at right-back. Normally, from two o’clock until 2.55 p.m. on a Saturday afternoon, my job is quite tranquil, but I was flying about trying to figure out what they were doing and seeing if there was any history of them doing this, and Mason-Clark playing as a striker, and so on.

“I genuinely enjoy the game of chess you play. But they gave us a curve ball, and it took some time to react. But, listen, that is no justification. There was some ambiguity, and it was the first time we experienced it while selecting an opposing squad. We played with the brakes off in the second half, had nothing to lose, and dominated the ball while sticking to the game plan.”

Cleverley commented on the entire game, saying, “It was a conventional Championship game of two halves, and certainly a fair outcome.

“I believe both managers will regard it as one point gained rather than two points lost since they both believe they might have lost the game. And there are plenty of bones to pick out of that one.”

When asked if it might have finished 4-4 considering the number of opportunities each team generated, he responded, “And that’s the troubling issue for me, why we allowed such excellent quality chances. We know they (Coventry) cross the ball more than anybody else, so I’m upset with how many crosses we allowed into our box, but more significantly, how many first contacts they made from those opportunities.”

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