Watford needed a positive reaction at Vicarage Road this afternoon and they delivered it in some style, thrashing an abject Charlton Athletic side 5-0 to record their biggest home win of the season.

The Hornets played with a much higher intensity in the first half than has often been the case in opening periods in recent months and their efforts earned a three-goal lead against an Addicks side who were a shambles defensively at times.

Craig Cathcart made the breakthrough in the 15th minute after the Addicks had failed to deal with a Miguel Layun and it was 2-0 ten minutes later when Gabriele Angella’s awareness and appreciation of an opportunity saw him provide the pass for Troy Deeney to net his tenth of the campaign.

It looked like the Hornets would have to settle for a two-goal lead at the break, but in the last minute of the opening half Odion Ighalo made it 3-0 from close range after being set up by Juan Carlos Paredes.

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Three became four in the 58th minute when Ighalo doubled his tally, thumping an unchallenged header into the back of the net following a precise Daniel Tozser delivery from a corner. And it was the Hungarian who rounded off the scoring in the last minute with a fine free-kick from 25 yards.

In truth though, the margin of victory could have been even wider as the Hornets carved out several other good opportunities but were denied by either good goalkeeping or the standard of the finish, although the visitors did spurn a good early opportunity to take the lead when Heurelho Gomes thwarted Johann Berg Gudmundsson.

Slavisa Jokanovic made three changes as the Hornets sought to get back on track following their disappointing showing in the 3-1 defeat at Huddersfield Town last weekend.

Almen Abdi joined Fernando Forestieri in being sidelined with a hamstring injury, while Daniel Pudil and Matej Vydra dropped to the bench. Their places were taken by Paredes, Ikechi Anya and Ighalo to partner Deeney, who was making his 200th appearance for the club in all competitions.

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A 1-0 defeat at home to Brighton & Hove Albion – Charlton Athletic’s eighth successive league game without a win – cost Bob Peeters his job, but new Addicks boss Guy Luzon was unable to take charge of his first game due to a delay in his work permit application.

Coaches Damian Matthew and Ben Roberts took the helm as the visitors made two changes, with Yoni Buyens and Callum Harriott came in for Johnnie Jackson and George Tucudean.

The Hornets, with Gianni Munari and not Tozser playing in the holding role, started a little sluggishly and Charlton had an early opening when a lapse down the Watford right allowed Igor Vetokele to cut into the penalty area but his shot was charged down by Angella.

By the eighth minute though, Watford had spurned three opportunities to take the lead.

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First, an Anya cross from the right picked out Ighalo but he glanced a header down and wide of Neil Etheridge’s left-hand post. Then, after Chris Solly had been booked in the fifth minute for pulling back Anya, Ighalo did superbly to get to the goal line and cut the ball back for Deeney, but he put his finish too close to the Charlton keeper, who was able to save.

Still the hosts kept pressing and following a corner from the right, Deeney had an effort blocked before he saw his follow-up headed clear off the line.

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Watford were being too casual at the back at times though, and in the 11th minute a mistake saw the ball given away to Vetokele, who played in Gudmundsson to his right but Gomes got down to his right to save his shot.

The Hornets were soon back on the front foot, with Tozser drifting in a cross from the left angle of the penalty area that was headed away for a corner as Deeney was poised to pounce.

Watford kept the pressure on from that set piece though, and after Charlton had failed to properly clear their lines, Layun played in a cross from the right that wasn’t dealt with and the ball sat up invitingly for Cathcart to smash it into the roof of the net to make it 1-0 to the hosts.

Layun, who had settled down well in midfield, then chanced his arm with a right-footed half-volley from 20 yards that bounced awkwardly in front of Etheridge, but he managed to scoop the ball away.

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By this stage though, Tozser had already signalled to the bench that Munari needed to be replaced as he was struggling and in the 21st minute the Italian was replaced by Pudil.

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But four minutes later the Hornets were two goals to the good when, spotting the chance to put Deeney in the clear, Angella lofted the ball over a horribly square Charlton backline and the skipper raced onto the ball and held of the attempted challenge of Andre Bikey before slotting it beneath Etheridge to make it 2-0 and move into double figures for the fourth season running.

Two almost became three moments later when a cross-field ball from Tozser picked out Anya, he laid it inside to Igahlo, who struck a first-time shot that the Charlton keeper did well to push behind.

Another opening came and went in the 30th minute when Tozser swung over a deep free-kick from the right that Angella met at the far post, but he was unable to keep his header down.

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Paredes was the next to try his luck with an arrow-like shot from the right side of the 18-yard box that wasn’t too far over the angle of post and bar.

The game then went into a bit of a lull before Watford’s next opportunity arrived in the 39th minute when Ighalo was played in but his finish lacked the power to really trouble Etheridge.

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But Igahlo’s efforts were to be rewarded in the 44th minute when Layun played in Paredes on the overlap, the Ecuadorian did well to centre the ball under pressure and the Nigerian did the rest from close range to put the Hornets three goals to the good.

Charlton had mustered the odd effort as they sought to repel the Hornets, with Jordan Cousins and Lawrie Wilson shooting wide form distance, and in the last minute of the opening period Gudmundsson curled a free-kick harmlessly wide of Gomes’ near post.

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There was no surprise that Charlton made a change at the start of the second half and Wilson was the player to make way to be replaced by Tony Watt.

But their opponents carried on from where they had left off in the first half after the restart and in the 49th minute some good approach work saw the ball fed to Deeney in the area and he struck an angled shot that Etheridge just managed to deflect behind for a corner.

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But a fourth goal was to arrive in the 58th minute and it was oh so simple. Tozser delivered a precision corner from the left and Ighalo rose unchallenged on the edge of the six-yard box to thump a header into the back of the net.

Charlton’s second substitution was made in the 65th minute as Simon Church replaced Vetokele and the visitors did muster a chance soon after when Bikey headed a delivery from the left wide.

But usual service was soon resumed as Ighalo toyed with the Charlton defence on the left side of the area before finding Anya, who in turn fed Tozser but he fired wide.

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The hosts created their next opportunity in the 73rd minute when some excellent link-up play between Igahlo and Deeney saw the latter hit a fine curling shot from 20 yards, only for it to be kept out by an even better save by Etheridge.

Both sides made a change two minutes later as the impressive Ighalo was replaced by Vydra, while Joe Gomez came on for Gudmundsson.

Charlton somehow escaped conceding a fifth with ten minutes remaining when Anya got to the by-line but with a lack of options in the middle, he played the ball of Tel Ben Haim, sending it spinning back towards his own goal but it incredibly stayed out.

There was a special moment for a young Scot two minutes later when George Byers made his first-team debut as a replacement for Anya.

Bikey was booked in injury time for chopping down Vydra and that gave Watford the platform to complete a very good afternoon’s work as Tozser whipped a 25-yard free-kick across Etheridge and into the far corner to make it 5-0.

Watford Observer:

Watford: Gomes; Cathcart, Angella, Hoban; Paredes, Layun, Munari (Pudil 21), Tozser, Anya (Byers 82); Ighalo (Vydra 75), Deeney. Not used: Bond, Doyley, Mensah, Smith.

Charlton Athletic: Etheridge; Solly, Ben Haim, Bikey, Wiggins; Buyens, Cousins; Wilson (Watt 46), Gudmundsson (Gomez 75), Harriott; Vetokele (Church 65). Not used: Dmitrovic, Onyewu, Fox, Tucudean.

Bookings: Solly for a foul on Anya (5); Bikey for a foul on Vydra (90).

Attendance: 17,073 (2,024 away).

Referee: Darren Bond.