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The Hornets goalkeeper made two fine saves late on in the game to ensure the hosts picked up a point as Guus Hiddink's side took an hour to test the Brazilian at Vicarage Road

Chelsea were frustrated by Watford as Heurelho Gomes made two excellent saves in a goalless draw at Vicarage Road on Wednesday night.

After a first half short of chances, Guus Hiddink's side finally had a shot on target after 60 minutes, but Nemanja Matic's long range volley was comfortably saved by Gomes.

But Eden Hazard sparked the Blues to life as a second half substitute and played in Branislav Ivanovic, who forced a superb diving stop out of the Brazilian, who then denied Diego Costa in the closing stages to record his ninth clean sheet of the season.

Guus Hiddink kept faith with the side that were victorious at Emirates Stadium, meaning captain John Terry retained his place in the starting line-up after revealing his time at the club could be set to end when his contract expires at the end of the season.

In a cagey match it was Etienne Capoue who had the best chance of the first half, Chelsea goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois standing firm to deny him in the 28th minute.

Oscar - scorer of a hat-trick in the 5-1 win over MK Dons in the FA Cup on Sunday - missed a glorious chance shortly after the restart when he failed to steer Diego Costa's pass into the back of the net, while Heurelho Gomes kept out Branislav Ivanovic from eight yards in the closing stages.

Hiddink's unbeaten run since returning to the helm now stretches to nine games in all competitions, but the draw will be seen as a missed opportunity to put greater distance between themselves and the relegation zone following Everton's 3-0 win at 18th-placed Newcastle United.

Watford manager Quique Sanchez Flores replaced Nathan Ake – ineligible against his parent club – and Miguel Britos with Jose Holebas and Sebastian Prodl, while Eden Hazard was a substitute for the visitors despite scoring his first goal for the club this season at MK Dons last time out.

Chelsea controlled possession early on but the two sides struggled to create clear-cut opportunities in a cagey affair until Watford stepped up their efforts ahead of the half-hour mark.

Prodl aimed his header from Ben Watson's corner too close to Courtois, and the Chelsea goalkeeper held firm to stop Capoue drilling home after a brilliant run from Jose Manuel Jurado.

That spurred the visitors into action, Costa spinning in behind Prodl to latch onto a long ball before the recovering Craig Cathcart did enough to deflect the Spaniard's shot wide with 32 minutes played.

However, Chelsea were unable to register a shot on target before the interval with Cesar Azpilicueta skewing wide from the left-hand side of the box, before Costa and Juan Carlos Paredes were shown yellow cards for a stoppage-time confrontation.

Gomes was forced to backpedal to stop John Obi Mikel's deflected strike from looping in soon after the restart and the chances began to flow.

Troy Deeney rifled narrowly wide from 20 yards and Holebas sent a shot into the side netting, but Oscar was unable to steer a cutback from Costa inside the near post from the edge of the six-yard box with 55 minutes on the clock.

Having kept out Oscar from just outside the box, Gomes denied Ivanovic from substitute Hazard's cutback 12 minutes from time.

Costa volleyed wide before Gomes once again produced a great save with two minutes remaining, stopping the striker's deflected effort from finding the top corner to ensure Watford move up to ninth.

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  That's all from us here and it has been a great pleasure talking you through all of tonight's action from Vicarage Road. We hope you can join us again very soon. Take care!
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  A Heurelho Gomes-inspired performance saw Watford keep Chelsea at bay as both sides shared the spoils in a 0-0 stalemate at Vicarage Road. The Hornets move up to ninth this evening as the Blues maintain their unbeaten run under Guus Hiddink. 
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  FULL-TIME: WATFORD 0-0 CHELSEA
• 90'+1'

   

  The fourth official on the touchline indicates that a minimum of three minutes is being added on here at Vicarage Road. Watford are looking to see out a point as Chelsea pile men forward in search of a late winner. 
• 89'

   

  Holebas plays a neat one-two with Deeney down the left before his cross towards Chelsea's penalty area gets deflected behind for a corner. The hosts are not sending their two centre-backs forward for this one. 
• 87'

   

  SUPER SAVE! Willian marauds forward down the right-hand side before he sends in a dangerous cross towards Costa, who rises above Nyom at the back stick but sees his header denied by Gomes. What a stop that was. 
• 87'

   

  SubstitutionEtienne Capoue Mario Suárez Mata
  Flores makes his third and final change of the match for Watford as he takes off Capoue, who was a threat at both ends for the hosts this evening, and replaces him with Suarez for his Hornets debut. 
• 85'

   

  Cathcart impresses again for Watford as he matches Costa for pace inside his own half, before he blocks the Chelsea man's cross and sees the ball trickle out for a corner. New boy Mario Suarez looks set to come on now for the hosts. 
• 83'

   

  Chelsea continue to heap pressure on Watford as Hazard scoops a good cross towards the back post, but Costa hits a shot wide from a tight angle. The Blues are emerging the stronger towards the back end of the match. 
• 81'

   

  WASTE! Willian drives forward on the counter-attack for Chelsea but as the Brazilian plays in a cross towards Hazard, the Belgian takes a heavy touch inside the box and that gives Gomes the chance to come and collect. 
• 79'

   

  Oscar receives possession outside Watford's half but as he neatly flicks it around the corner towards Costa, the Chelsea talisman's touch lets him down and allows Gomes to come off his line and collect. 
• 77'

   

  WHAT A SAVE! It's lovely football from Chelsea as Hazard pulls the ball back at the byline towards Ivanovic, who drives a shot towards goal as Gomes makes a superb stop from point-blank range. 
• 75'

   

  Nyom makes a positive impact after coming on as a substitute by slipping in Capoue, who wins Watford a corner as his cross towards Ighalo gets blocked by Zouma. 
• 73'

   

  SubstitutionNemanja Matić Eden Hazard
  Hiddink makes his first change of the game for Chelsea as he takes off Matic, who was neat and tidy with his passing tonight, and replaces him with the more forward-thinking Hazard. 
• 73'

   

  Gomes invites unnecessary on Watford as he controls a pass inside his own half, before he smashes it out of bounds under no pressure. Chelsea are looking to take a quick throw-in now. 
• 71'

   

  The referee waves away the hosts' protests for a free-kick as Capoue appears to smash the ball into Terry's trailing arm. However the replay shows that it struck the Chelsea man's chest. 
• 69'

   

  Oscar drifts infield from the left-hand side past Capoue and forces a corner for Chelsea as Gomes parries the Brazilian's long-range effort out of bounds. Willian curls in the resulting set play which the Watford shot-stopper punches away. 
• 68'

   

  SubstitutionJuan Carlos Paredes Reasco Allan Romeo Nyom
  Flores makes his second change of the game for Watford tonight as he brings on Nyom in place of Paredes, who struggled up against both Oscar and Costa for large periods of the match. 
• 67'

   

  Chelsea get into a good position down the left flank as Oscar and Fabregas look to isolate Nyom, but the former overcooks his pass to the latter and hands Watford a cheap throw-in as a result. 
• 65'

   

  Paredes plays a lofted pass forward towards Deeney down the right-hand side, but Azpilicueta clears away the danger for Chelsea. Watford's front two have been rather quiet as a result of the visitors' solidity in the second half. 
• 64'

   

  SubstitutionJosé Manuel Jurado Marín Almen Abdi
  Flores makes first change of the game for Watford this evening as he takes off Jurado, who looked dangerous in a central position for the hosts, and replaces him with Abdi. 
• 63'

   

  It's still rather even steven here at Vicarage Road as both sides take their turns keeping hold of the ball and then dropping into a compact shape when the opposition has control. You feel whoever manages to score tonight will be in a very strong position to secure all three points. 
• 61'

   

  Behrami keeps tight to Costa as Chelsea look to build a neat counter-attack and makes a good challenge after the striker looked to play in Oscar. The Watford midfielder has been efficient with his work so far tonight. 
• 59'

   

  GOOD HIT! Capoue heads away Willian's cross into the path of Matic, who catches the ball sweetly as he smashes a shot down the throat of Gomes. The Watford goalkeeper initially drops it but soon makes a quick recovery. 
• 57'

   

  Holebas has caused Chelsea's backline plenty of problems this evening but as he looks to steam forward again for Watford, Ivanovic reads his intentions and makes a good tackle for the visitors. 
• 55'

   

  CLOSE! Costa ghosts in behind Paredes and Prodl as he plays a neat cutback towards Oscar, who just fires wide at the near post. The replay shows that the Chelsea striker was actually offside in the build up, but the officials missed it. 
• 53'

   

  Costa receives a pass from Oscar as Chelsea look to inflict damage on the counter-attack, but Prodl - who has so often been second best up against the Blues' lead striker this evening - gets a good tackle in this time.
• 51'

   

  JUST WIDE! Holebas shines when marauding forward from left-back yet again as he plays a neat one-two with Capoue, before he powers an effort into the side netting with many inside the ground thinking it went in. 
• 49'

   

  Deeney gets hold of possession and tries to quickly feed in Ighalo on the counter-attack, but Terry spots the danger superbly and makes a cracking intervention to prevent Watford's dangerous front two from combining once again.
• 47'

   

  CHANCE! Mikel latches onto possession just outside Watford's box and drives a shot towards goal, which deflects up into the air and requires Gomes to touch the ball over the bar. Corner to Chelsea.
• 47'

   

  BLOCK! Chelsea fly out of the traps straight away as Fabregas receives the ball on the half turn and plays in Oscar, but the Brazilian sees his shot towards goal get blocked by Cathcart inside the box. 
• 46'

   

  Welcome back! Watford get us underway again for the second half here at Vicarage Road.
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  It's honours even here at Vicarage Road as both sets of players head down the tunnel for the half-time break. Watford created the better opportunities to score but they couldn't find a way past Courtois, with the scoreline still 0-0.
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  HALF-TIME: WATFORD 0-0 CHELSEA
• 45'+2'

   

  Yellow Card Diego Da Silva Costa
  Costa also receives a yellow card from the referee as he responds to Paredes barging him to the floor angrily. The Chelsea forward gets pulled away from the heated exchange by peacemaker Ighalo.
• 45'+2'

   

  Yellow Card Juan Carlos Paredes Reasco
  Paredes becomes the second Watford player to see yellow this evening. The right-back gets booked for his involvement in a heated battle with Costa after he slightly barged the Chelsea man to the deck.
• 45'+2'

   

  The fourth official on the touchline indicates that a minimum of one minute is being added on before the half-time interval here at Vicarage Road. But following Paredes and Costa's earlier spat, more time is set to be heaped on.
• 45'

   

  A short suspension in play occurs as Costa gets involved in a scuffle with Paredes. The replay shows that both players fall down to the floor under pressure from the other in two separate incidents, with contact minimal in both. 
• 43'

   

  Watson collects possession inside his own half but he misjudges Capoue's intentions as he sprays a pass towards the Frenchman, who runs away from the ball. Chelsea are surging forward looking to score before the interval now.
• 41'

   

  The home supporters appeal for a penalty as Holebas falls down inside the penalty area under pressure from Ivanovic. The referee waves away their protests as the Blues look to launch a counter-attack now. 
• 39'

   

  Willian engineers half a yard for himself down the right past Holebas but his cross towards Costa flies too close to Gomes, who makes a comfortable save for Watford. 
• 37'

   

  After coming out of wave after wave of Watford pressure alive, Chelsea are now starting to keep hold of possession better. Hiddink's men are still a tad slow with it, though, and need to get more men forward to create more chances.
• 35'

   

  Costa picks up the ball down the left-hand side past Paredes and as he waits for Willian to make a run into the box, the Spain international sends a cross towards him but Holebas makes a good clearance for the hosts. 
• 33'

   

  CLOSE! And just like that, Chelsea almost break the deadlock. Costa latches onto a long pass forward from Oscar and as he spins away from Cathcart, he sends a shot just wide of the far post from a tight angle. 
• 31'

   

  Ighalo steams forward on the breakaway for Watford again but he shows too much of the ball to Matic, who makes a good tackle in the middle of the park for Chelsea. The visitors are on the ropes at the moment.
• 29'

   

  Ighalo sets his eyes on using his pace to run in behind Chelsea's backline once again, but Zouma gets tight to the Nigerian this time and concedes a free-kick in the making. 
• 27'

   

  BRILLIANT SAVE! Jurado continues to cause Chelsea all sorts of problems as he slips in an onrushing Capoue, who drives a wicked shot towards goal but Courtois parries away the ball at the near post. It's all Watford at the moment.
• 25'

   

  SHOULD HAVE BEEN 1-0! The best chance of the game so far comes Watford's way as Holebas sends in a lovely cross towards Ighalo, who somehow fails to hit the target from inside the six-yard box.
• 23'

   

  Ighalo drives into the penalty area after receiving a good pass from Deeney, but Zouma matches him stride for stride and makes a good block for Chelsea, before Mikel smashes away the danger. 
• 21'

   

  Holebas steps up to take the resulting set play for Watford but his effort takes a deflection off the outside of Chelsea's wall, before Courtois comes and collects the ball for the visitors.
• 19'

   

  Yellow Card Sebastian Prödl
  Prodl becomes the first man to get his name taken by the referee this evening. The Watford defender clips the leg of Oscar inside his own half and therefore picks up a caution.
• 19'

   

  Gomes punts a long pass forward towards Deeney but the Watford striker gets fouled by Terry, who leans all over the Hornets' skipper as both contest for the ball. 
• 17'

   

  Watson curls in another decent corner for Watford as Ighalo flicks the ball into the six-yard box, but Courtois rushes off his line and makes a comfortable claim for Chelsea. 
• 15'

   

  Fabregas seizes possession in the centre of the pitch for Chelsea and slips through Costa, but as the powerful forward looks to test Gomes inside Watford's box, Cathcart makes a solid block for the hosts.
• 13'

   

  Costa, frustrated as Prodl gets tight to him inside the penalty area, pushes the Watford defender to the floor and therefore concedes a free-kick. The referee chooses to keep his cards in his pocket on that occasion.
• 11'

   

  It's a half chance for Chelsea at the other end as Willian flies past Holebas and bends in a cross towards Costa, but Gomes gets there first as he punches the ball away.
• 9'

   

  Paredes bursts forward down the right flank to get on the end of a pass from Ighalo but as the Ecuadorian full-back curls in a cross towards the box, Zouma heads away the danger for Chelsea.
• 7'

   

  Watson curls in a corner towards Ighalo at the back stick but Azpilicueta gets in front of the Watford striker and hacks the ball away from inside Chelsea's penalty area. Good defending from him.
• 5'

   

  Jurado skips away from Fabregas in the middle of the park but just as he tries to steam down the left flank, Ivanovic pulls him back and concedes a free-kick. 
• 3'

   

  Oscar latches onto possession down the left-hand side from Mikel and plays a lofted pass forward towards Fabregas, but Gomes reads the danger well and comes and claims the ball for Watford. 
• 1'

   

  Chelsea get us underway here at Vicarage Road. The man in charge of the cards for today's affair is Mike Dean. 
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  Both sets of players are now stripped and raring to go as they leave the tunnel and enter on to the field here at Vicarage Road. We are just moments away from seeing the action start to unfold. 
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  CHELSEA substitutes: Begovic, Baba, Hazard, Traore, Kenedy, Cahill, Loftus-Cheek. 
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  CHELSEA (4-2-3-1): Courtois; Ivanovic, Zouma, Terry (c), Azpilicueta; Mikel, Matic; Willian, Fabregas, Oscar; Costa. 
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  WATFORD substitutes: Pantilimon, Nyom, Suarez, Amrabat, Guedioura, Anya, Abdi. 
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  WATFORD (4-3-1-2): Gomes; Paredes, Cathcart, Prodl, Holebas; Capoue, Watson, Behrami; Jurado; Ighalo, Deeney (c).
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  TEAM NEWS: Hiddink has made four alterations to the team which started Chelsea's 5-1 win over MK Dons at the weekend. Eden Hazard drops down to the bench as Willian gets the chance to impress from the get go tonight. 
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  TEAM NEWS: Quique Sanchez Flores has made seven changes to the side which started Watford's 1-0 win over Nottingham Forest in their last outing. Top scorer Odion Ighalo returns to the starting XI against Chelsea, while new signing Mario Suarez is on the bench and could make his debut for the club this evening. 
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  Chelsea, on the flip side, have been in inspired form since their stalemate with Watford on Boxing Day. The Blues are still unbeaten under Guus Hiddink's stewardship, smashing five past MK Dons in the FA Cup on Sunday.
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  After suffering four straight league defeats following their 2-2 draw with Chelsea back in December, Watford are now in good spirits again after securing back-to-back wins over Newcastle United and Nottingham Forest in their last two games.
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  Good evening and welcome to our LIVE text commentary on tonight's Premier League clash between Watford and Chelsea from Vicarage Road. Kick-off is at 7:45pm GMT.