Watford can count themselves unfortunate not to be ahead against champions Chelsea and facing ten men at half time but the game is goalles.

Quique Sanchez Flores' side had the better of the chances in the first half at Vicarage Road while tempestuous Chelsea striker Diego Costa somehow avoided red for two incidents which merited cautions.

The first saw the striker, who worked under Flores at Atletico Madrid, shove the returning Sebastian Prodl to the floor off the ball. He then became involved in a scuffle with Juan Carlos Paredes which saw the Ecuadorian pushed over.

Costa and Paredes were both booked for their part in the incident seconds before the half-time whistle. The decisions were greeted by jeers from both sets of supporters.

Flores made two changes from the side which beat Newcastle United 2-1 in their last Premier League match ten days ago.

Jose Holebas, as expected, came into the side in place of the ineligible Nathan Ake who, due to Premier League rules, couldn’t play against his parent club. Sebastian Prodl replaced Miguel Britos who missed out with illness.

Chelsea enjoyed more of the ball early on but for the most part Costa was well marshalled by the returning Prodl. 

Watford’s first sight at goal came when Troy Deeney and Odion Ighalo linked up cleverly to release Paredes on the right. His clipped cross was headed away by Kurt Zouma though.

Costa then stole a march down the right after Valon Behrami was carelessly robbed of possession in midfield. But the striker saw his effort superbly blocked by a sliding Craig Cathcart.

The Hornets had a penalty appeal waved away at the mid-point of the first half. Jose Manuel Jurado burst into the visitors’ box before going down softly under pressure from Nemanja Matic but Mike Dean wasn’t convinced.

But the Golden Boys’ best opportunity came in the 25th minute. Holebas motored down the left and swung in a hopeful cross for Ighalo. Watford’s top scorer got up highest but fluffed the connection, heading tamely into the turf.

Ighalo earned a corner a couple of minutes later after selling two Chelsea defenders, manufacturing enough space to get off a shot which was blocked for a corner.

From the resulting set-piece Prodl made a good connection but Thibaut Courtois had no trouble plucking the ball out of the sky.

Better was to come almost immediately after. Jurado twisted and turned on the edge of the area before releasing the overlapping Etienne Capoue. The Frenchman let fly on the run, testing the palms of Courtois with a rasping drive.

The visitors still retained a threat. That was never clearer than when a long ball forward freed Costa on the break. The Spaniard held off Cathcart before spinning an unleashing a left-footed strike which was deflected wide of Heurelho Gomes’ far post.

That was the best Chelsea could muster, though, and the two sides went in level at the break.

Watford: Gomes; Paredes, Prodl, Cathcart, Holebas; Capoue, Watson, Behrami; Jurado, Deeney (c); Ighalo.

Substitutes: Pantilimon (GK), Nyom, Suarez, Amrabat, Guedioura, Anya, Abdi.

Chelsea: Courtois; Ivanovic, Zouma, Terry (c), Azpilicueta; Mikel, Matic; Willian, Fabregas, Oscar; Costa.

Substitutes: Begovic (GK), Rahman, Hazard, Traore, Kenedy, Cahill, Loftus-Cheek.

Referee: Mike Dean.