There were no arguments and no complaints about the result from Watford head coach Valerien Ismael after the game.

The Hornets were put to the sword by Leeds and resisted – thanks largely to skipper Dan Bachmann – for an hour before finally succumbing to a defeat that looked inevitable from very earlyon.

“I’ve got to congratulate Leeds because they deserved the win without a doubt,” said Ismael.

“They had more desire and they were very strong in the first half.

“We knew that when you come here you have to be strong in everything that you do. They are the first team we’ve played who have come down from the Premier League and you can see easily the quality of their players.

“I think to go in 0-0 at half-time we were lucky. We changed the shape in the second half and I think we were more stable.

“We were not as dangerous as we usually are but at least we were more stable and able to put their back four under some pressure.

“When we conceded the goal it was the same picture as in other games, we lost duels too easily.

“Then it was going to be more difficult and quickly the second goal came, from a corner but the first time we have done that this.”

Ismael lamented the fact that his team did not make Leeds work far harder to get the three points.

“Throughout the 90 minutes the opponents were the better team, they are a top team and they showed their quality,” he said.

“But when you come somewhere and you know it will be a tough game, you have to make it harder for the opponent.

“We have quality on the ball but at points today we lost the ball too easily.”

The head coach also said it was a wake-up call for any of his players who had aspirations to go higher in their careers.

“A lot of players pretend to want to play in the Premier League and be a Premier League player. To do that you have to show that quality and today that was not the case,” he said.

“We have to learn that we have a long way to go to be a top team. We will learn, and next time when we face a top team we know we have to make it much harder for them and show more bravery in our game.”

In his post-match press conference, Ismael also revealed goalkeeper Ben Hamer was dropped from the matchday squad after being late for a team meeting.