WATFORD boss Tom Cleverley was delighted with the way his side "suffered" against Middlesbrough - and admitted he had to tinker with his preferred approach in Saturday's victory at Vicarage Road.

Cleverley wouldn't usually be comfortable with his side having less than 40% of possession but identified the importance of Watford's work without the ball ahead of Boro's visit.

The Watford boss went to the Hawthorns on Tuesday night on a scouting trip and was hugely impressed by Boro in their win over West Brom - and in particular Ben Doak. And he was full of praise for his left wing-back Ken Sema, who did a fine job of shackling the Liverpool loanee.

"I thought he was fantastic today,"" said Cleverley.

"Doak is a real explosive player. I went to watch Middlesbrough on Tuesday and was really impressed with Doak. I thought Ken managed him excellently and I was really pleased with his performance.”

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Cleverley was delighted with his side on the whole. Watford looked set for their first home defeat of the season after George Edmundson put Boro ahead but the Hornets stunned Michael Carrick's side thanks to two late goals from substitutes Edo Kayembe and Kwadwo Baah.

Cleverley said the late show was a reward for his side's hard work that had gone before. And, as was the case with Derby boss Paul Warne earlier this season, Cleverley admitted he had to alter his usual approach for the visit of Boro.

“To compete against the quality of the opposition is really encouraging," he said.

"You know against Middlesbrough you will have to suffer some periods without the ball. To me, that was the perfect way to respond and we’ve shown our credentials today.

"We knew we would have to be solid because they’re a team who love to attack you through the middle of the pitch with their two midfielders and also two number tens with Hamilton coming inside alongside Azaz. So if you lose discipline once it can be a knife through butter.

"It takes 95 minutes of focus and that is tough on the legs, but the players executed it perfectly. We don’t want to be a counter-attacking team, but if we have to be we’ve got the tools to do it and I thought the lads were excellent.

"We’ve played against a top team today and sometimes you’ve got to absorb when the opposition are so good. I’m so pleased for the lads. We had to show a lot of patience, we stayed in the game at one down, and then our subs came on, made an impact and won us the game. It’s a significant win and I’m really pleased.”