In the years to come today is likely to be remembered as one of those ‘I was there’ occasions as Watford scored an astonishing seven second-half goals to beat Blackpool 7-2 and move to within four points of the top of the Championship.

The Hornets had dug themselves a hole at the interval after some shambolic defending had allowed the basement side to open up a two-goal lead. But once Odion Ighalo had halved the deficit within two minutes of the restart, the Hornets were utterly relentless as the beleaguered Tangerines were battered into submission.

Ighalo went on to score four times to continue his purple patch, Troy Deeney finished with one after being even involved in almost every other goal and Matej Vydra and Gabriele Angella also netted.

Slavisa Jokanovic made just the one change from the team that thumped Charlton Athletic last week, but it was a significant one tactically as Vydra replaced Gianni Munari as the Hornets switched to a 3-4-3 formation with the Czech international playing in a free role off the front two of Deeney and Ighalo. New signings Vujadin Savic and Ben Watson were both among the substitutes.

Watford Observer:

By contrast, Lee Clark opted for five changes as Blackpool continued their search of a first away league win of the season.

There was a change in goal as Elliot Parish replaced Joe Lewis, while former Hornet Nyron Nosworthy, Darren O’Dea, David Ferguson and the fit-again Ishmael Miller were brought into the starting line-up. Grant Hall missed out through injury, but Charles Dunne, Connor Oliver and Nathan Delfouneso dropped down to join Lewis on the bench.

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Watford went into the game knowing a win would see them close the gap to the top of the table to four points but before proceedings got underway there was a minute’s applause in tribute to former manager Ken Furphy, with the Hornets players also wearing black armbands.

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It was the visitors who were the first to apply pressure though, with an under-pressure Heurelho Gomes was forced to punch away a Jamie O’Hara free-kick into the 18-yard box. This led to Blackpool’s first corner but a foul gave the Hornets the chance to clear their lines.

The Tangerines continued to make the early running though, and in the sixth minute Miller was able to create space for himself on the right side of the penalty area but he dragged his shot wide of the target.

Watford’s first opening came a minute later – and it was a good one – as Daniel Tozser drifted in a free-kick from the right and Angella rose well but headed over the top.

The Hornets had started sluggishly but if they needed a wake-up call, it arrived in the eighth minute and it was largely of their own making.

Juan Carlos Paredes, under pressure from Miller, got involved in a horrible mix-up with Gomes, with the ball ricocheting off his body and falling for Andrea Orlandi, who kept his composure to fire into the empty net and give the visitors a shock 1-0 lead.

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It was an advantage that was very nearly shortlived as Deeney sought to release Ighalo on the left side of the area, he toyed with Nosworthy before knocking it back to his captain in the middle of the 18-yard box. Seeing Vydra breaking into space in front of him, Deeney instantly laid it off to the Czech Republic striker, but he clipped it wide of the target with his outstretched right foot.

The Hornets’ next sight of an opening arrived in the 18th minute when Deeney set Ikechi Anya free but, with Ighalo waiting to pounce in the middle, he put his cross too close to Parish. Soon after, Ighalo tried a shot from outside the area, but a deflection took the pace off of it and the Tangerines keeper was able to gather.

A dangerous Paredes cross set up another Hornets chance in the 21st minute, with the ball falling to Anya on the left side of the box. He came inside before hitting a right-footed shot, which Parish could only parry and Deeney put an acrobatic follow-up over the bar.

O’Hara curled a 30-yard free-kick harmlessly wide at the other end but the half hour came and went with the Hornets still struggling to get any concerted fluency to their play.

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However, Parish was called upon again in the 33rd minute when he had to push over a 20-yard right-footed strike from Ighalo after the forward had managed to work a shooting opportunity.

The Hornets continued to lift their game as they continually probed for an equaliser, with Vydra seeing an on-target shot blocked before Steve Davies was the first player to be booked for preventing a free-kick from being taken quickly.

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Gomes had been a spectator for much of the first half, but he was called into action three minutes before the break to push behind a Miller shot. And from the resulting corner, the Hornets were to find themselves two down following some more woeful defending.

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David Ferguson was allowed to attack the right side of the penalty area before he cut in and fired in a low cross which broke for Davies, who made a real hash of his initial effort but was still able to react and fire home to put Blackpool 2-0 up.

There was little surprise that Jokanovic opted to make a change at the break, with Watson coming on for his debut in place of Tommie Hoban as the hosts went to four at the back.

The Hornets needed to make a fast start to the second half and they got exactly what was required within two minutes of the restart.

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After Watson won the ball with a foot up, Blackpool stopped as they looked for a free-kick which never came, with Miguel Layun breaking into the area before squaring for Ighalo to apply the simplest of finishes finishes to continue his fine scoring run.

Deeney then flashed a drive wide from the edge of the area but by the 53rd minute the Hornets were back on terms.

After Tozser had seen a free-kick headed behind for a corner, the Hungarian took the set piece himself and Deeney rose highest to glance the ball into the far corner to make it 2-2.

Within two minutes, the turnaround was complete as Layun’s ball into the area was knocked down by Deeney and Ighalo did well to get on the end of it and slide the ball past Parish to put the Hornets in front.

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To make matters worse for the shell-shocked visitors, Peter Clarke was injured in his attempts to prevent the goal and he was replaced by Niall Maher.

He had only been on the pitch a matter of moments though, before Watford – incredibly – scored their fourth goal inside 12 minutes.

Anya was the creator with a fine run down the left before he cut the ball back and it broke off a defender for Vydra to end his barren spell with a right-footed finish inside Parish’s near post.

It took a fine save from Gomes to keep the Hornets two goals to the good as he dived high to his right to claw away a fine 25-yard free-kick from O’Hara. But the hosts were soon back on the front foot as Angella almost got on the end of a cross from the left.

The Italian didn’t have long to wait though, because by the 66th minute he had made it 5-2.

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Again the goal originated from a corner, this time from the left and it was allowed to reach the far post where Deeney headed down and against the upright and the rebound fell invitingly for Angella to do the rest.

Vydra then forced Parish into a save after he had accelerated onto a through ball, before another minute’s applause rang out around Vicarage Road in the 68th minute in memory of Furphy.

But for an instinctive reaction save from Parish, Ighalo would have completed his hat-trick in the 71st minute when he was thwarted from close range after Vydra headed a Deeney centre back across goal.

However, after Nathan Delfouneso had replaced David Perkins, Igahlo was to celebrate his treble, the ball rebounding off a post following a Deeney shot and into his chest before cannoning into the net.

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Munari replaced Tozser in the 78th minute but Watford were in no mood to let up and within three minutes it was 7-2 as Deeney rounded the helpless Parish near the edge of the area and kept his head to square for Ighalo to tap in his fourth.

Whether they decided to take pity on their opponents, the Hornets settled at seven to make it an incredible 12 goals in successive home games.

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Watford: Gomes; Cathcart, Angella, Hoban (Watson 46); Paredes, Layun, Tozser (Munari 78), Anya (Pudil 83); Vydra; Ighalo, Deeney. Not used: Bond, Doyley, Savic, Mensah.

Blackpool: Parish; Nosworthy, Clarke (Maher 57), O'Dea; McMahon, Orlandi, O’Hara, Perkins (Delfouneso 71), Ferguson; Miller, Davies (Feruz 81). Not used: Lewis, Dunne, Oliver, Cameron,.

Bookings: Davies for preventing a free-kick from being taken (39).

Attendance: 17,015.

Refree: Fred Graham.