Watford were leading 1-0 when Etienne Capoue had a chance to score a second goal with ten minutes remaining. The midfielder was unable to take it. Within five minutes, Manchester City had scored twice and were to take the three points. For the second time in a week the Hornets had been beaten late on by one of the Premier League’s big clubs.

Like against Tottenham Hotspur on Monday, defeat was hard on Quique Sanchez Flores’ men. Led by the outstanding Ben Watson in midfield, they gave everything and ultimately tiredness and that bit of extra quality may have proved the difference.

Watford sought to be positive from the outset and after Odion Ighalo had gone closest to breaking the deadlock in the first half, the home side did take the lead when a Watson corner was glanced into his own net by Aleksandar Kolarov.

Crucially though, the Golden Boys were unable to get a second goal and they were to be stunned by a two-goal blast in almost as many minutes; Yaya Toure equalising before Sergio Aguero scored what was to prove the winner.

Flores was always going to have to make one change after Nathan Ake’s sending off in the late 2-1 defeat against Tottenham Hotspur on Monday but he also made an expected second.

Following his impressive display in the 2-2 draw at Chelsea, Jose Holebas returned at left-back and, unsurprisingly, Allan Nyom came back in for Ikechi Anya on the opposite side of the defence.

Manchester City came into the game without an away win in six Premier League outings and Manuel Pellegrini opted to keep faith with the same starting line-up that drew 0-0 at Leicester City on Tuesday.

The Hornets started positively with Almen Abdi nicking the ball away from Kolarov on the right and getting in a cross but he was unable to pick out a teammate and Eliaquim Mangala cleared.

Soon after though, Jose Manuel Jurado got the better of Toure in midfield and accelerated away from the Ivorian before feeding Abdi right of centre on the edge of the 18-yard box. The Swiss midfielder had options but opted to go for the shot and struck a powerful right-footed drive narrowly over Joe Hart’s crossbar.

Watford had started well and in the tenth minute they seized on an opening when Mangala miscontrolled Craig Cathcart’s pass downfield; Abdi flicking the ball through to put Ighalo in on the right side of the area but just as he was set to pull the trigger Nicolas Otamendi made a good sliding block.

An even better chance came the home side’s way three minutes later when Abdi, who was getting quite a lot of joy down the right in the opening stages, again found Ighalo. He battled his way past Mangala to fire in a low effort on the angle but Hart made a good save with his legs and the rebound wouldn’t fall kindly to anyone in a yellow shirt.

Watson fired a 25-yard free-kick a yard over in the 17th minute after Ighalo had drawn a foul. But City than had their first opening of note when Kevin De Bruyne hit an opportunistic shot from the right side of the area which bounced awkwardly in front of Heurelho Gomes, whose parry was just too high for Sergio Aguero to capitalise on.

Although Watford had been the better side, they were served another warning in the 28th minute when David Silva was found in space on the right and he slipped in Fernandinho, who drew a blocking save out of Gomes with Raheem Sterling then firing the follow up when the ball eventually dropped for him.

Aguero was the next to have an opening when the ball was headed through to him left of centre but the Argentine striker could only fire into the side netting.

City’s best attacking spell of the first half continued with Silva seeing a shot deflected away off a teammate after Aguero had briefly threatened to get in behind, only to be marshalled wide following a timely intervention from Cathcart.

Nyom was the first player to be booked in the 38th minute when he went down belatedly in the City area having got past Fernandinho following some link-up play with Abdi. Soon after that, Jurado curled a shot wide of Hart’s left-hand post after a good Watson delivery from a free-kick had been partially cleared.

The Hornets were straight on the front foot at the start of the second half with Watson, who was again getting through so much good and necessary work in the engine room, testing Hart with a low drive from the edge of the 18-yard box which the England keeper had to push behind.

City had barely got out of their half at the start of the second period but Gomes should at least have been tested in the 54th minute when, after winning a corner, Fernandinho lost his man to connect with Silva’s delivery from the left but he planted a free header over.

The cost of that miss was to be felt even more a minute later when the Hornets made the breakthrough.

Again it stemmed from a corner, awarded thanks to Ighalo’s harrying of Mangala, and this time Watson whipped in a delivery from the left into the near post and it got the slightest touch off Kolarov’s head before flying inside the far post to make it 1-0.

Pellegrini’s response was to bring on Jesus Navas for Sterling on the hour but the Hornets had their tails up, with Holebas embarking on a jinking run forward before hitting a piledriver that looked to be on target before it deflected wide off Ighalo.

City had a chance to get back on terms in the 68th minute when after a Deeney pass to Ighalo had been intercepted, De Bruyne cut it back to Toure from the left side of the area but the City captain fired over.

Soon after, Gomes needed to come to the rescue with a fine save low to his left to keep out a De Bruyne strike from the edge of the 18-yard box after the Belgian had worked a neat give-and-go with Silva.

Toure and Abdi exchanged shots at either end before City made their second change as Wilfried Bony replaced Mangala, with Fernandinho dropping into the back four.

The Hornets were, unsurprisingly, starting to show signs of tiredness but before Adlene Guedioura replaced Jurado with ten minutes to go, the home side could have all but made the game safe. Capoue broke forward and despite having Ighalo in front of him and to his right, the midfielder opted to go it alone, breaking through the challenges of Otamendi and Fernandino before firing high and wide with Hart stranded.

Had that opportunity gone in, the Hornets would have been within touching distance of a famous win. By the 84th minute, they were to be behind.

City pulled levelled in the 82nd minute when De Bruyne played a corner into the near post, Nyom was unable to cut it out and Toure cleverly guided a volley inside Gomes’ near post to make it 1-1.

Two minutes later the home side were stunned when after an attempted attack had broken down the left, Silva fed the overlapping Bacary Sagna who sent over a pin-point cross which picked out an unmarked Aguero and he superbly headed back across Gomes and into the far corner to put City in front.

That was to be the scorer’s last involvement as he was replaced by Martin Demichelis but Watford then almost snatched an equaliser when Guedioura sent over a deep cross from the left and the ball dropped for Ighalo at the far post, but he didn’t get quite enough on his attempted finish and put it too close to Hart.

Like against Spurs on Monday, it was another defeat that was tough to take for the Hornets, who had given so much with many of their players flat on their backs or dropping to their knees at the final whistle such was the level of effort they’d put in. But it was City who were celebrating after their search for an away Premier League win finally came to an end.

Watford: Gomes; Nyom, Cathcart, Britos, Holebas; Capoue, Watson; Abdi, Deeney, Jurado (Guedioura 80); Ighalo. Not used: Arlauskis, Prodl, Behrami, Oulare, Beghuis, Anya.

Manchester City: Hart; Sagna, Otamendi, Mangala (Bony 75), Kolarov; Toure, Fernandinho; De Bruyne, Silva, Sterling (Navas 60); Aguero (Dimechelis 85). Not used: Caballero, Zabaleta, Fernando, Clichy.

Bookings: Nyom for simulation (38).

Attendance: 20,676 (2,014 away fans).

Referee: Martin Atkinson.