Norwich City progress in League Cup after win at Watford

Norwich City win 2-1 at Watford in the League Cup first round as Diallo sets up both goals.

Norwich City beat Watford to reach the next round with Diallo providing two assists

Norwich City beat Watford 2-1 in the League Cup first round at Vicarage Road. Papa Amadou Diallo delivered a telling competitive debut with a brace of assists, first finding Josh Sargent for the opener and then setting up Marcelino Nunez for a long-range strike that caught the keeper off guard. The home side briefly rallied when Kwadwo Baah struck back in the second half, but Norwich held firm to advance to the next round. Norwich manager Liam Manning kept four starters from the Millwall defeat, and Sargent again led the side as captain.

Watford tried to respond after the break, with Paulo Pezzolano making a triple substitution to lift the attack. Diallo remained a constant thread in Norwich’s counter moves, while the visitors also gave minutes to new signings and bench players such as Matej Jurasek and Jakov Medic. The match featured a back-and-forth spell in which the home crowd reacted with boos as Watford pressed, but Norwich’s defensive setup and tactical discipline ensured a late rearguard action held off the hosts.

Diallo’s impact signals that Norwich may have found a real creative outlet early in the season. His willingness to drift inside and link with Nunez gave Norwich control in midfield areas and a threat in transition that Watford could not fully disrupt. The result also matters for Manning, who now has a competitive win to build on and a platform to test rotation without sacrificing momentum in the league.

For Watford, the match exposed gaps in the home side’s pace and decision-making under pressure, even as they showed resilience to peg the game back. The night offered a snapshot of the transfer window’s churn, with Jurasek and other newcomers getting minutes, but it also underscored the need for balance between Cup ambitions and league form as the season unfolds.

Highlights

Cup progress is nice, but the real test begins when league duties resume.