Watford boss Roy Hodgson had no complaints after their 5-1 defeat at Manchester City.
Gabriel Jesus scored an early brace for the home side before Hassane Kamara fired one back for Watford. Despite the Hornets' best efforts, Rodri got Manchester City back on track, while Jesus scored two more to complete the victory for the Citizens.
Hodgson knew it would be a tough challenge taking on Pep Guardiola's side, who currently occupy the top step of the Premier League table, with the gap in quality reflected on the scoresheet.
“All defeats are tough to take but we were architects of our downfall to some degree, particularly relating to the timing of the goals at the start of each half," said Hodgson.
“The scoreline reflects the difference between the two teams and there's no point covering that up. At 2-1 down we were making a decent fist of it, as much as I could expect of the players. But we've paid a heavy price for giving them a fourth goal at the start of the second half.
“If we were going to have any hope of making them work harder for their victory then we needed to keep a clean sheet for far longer than we did.
“Our belief last week was dented somewhat with that late goal [against Brentford], so next week is about trying to lift up people's confidence and getting them to put this game aside. We need learn from our mistakes."
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