Javi Gracia Refuses to Be Drawn on Wilf Zaha 'Dive' While Praising Players Following 0-0 Draw

Javi Gracia has refused to make a judgement on referee Chris Kavanagh's controversial decision to book Wilfried Zaha for simulation in Watford's 0-0 draw with Crystal Palace on Saturday. 

The Ivorian went down in the box under pressure in the second half, but Kavanagh awarded the home side a free kick and booked Zaha. 

"To be honest," he told reporters in his post-match press conference, "I didn't see. There were many players around him. I think there are many situations about Zaha like today, because he has that style of play, and he makes a lot of dribbles and you never know. Maybe if I see on TV I can tell you something.

"It was a very, very difficult game for the referee. There were a lot of difficult situations. I prefer not to say anything, because I try to help the difficult job of the referees."

He also praised his side for their efforts in the first half in particular, saying: "I think we knew how the game would be, I think we played a very good first half - maybe one of the best first halves we have played so far. We created chances to score and didn't take them, and then Palace had more control in the second half and created two good chances to score. 

"We didn't keep the same level as the first half, but I knew Zaha...there are always many situations about him because I think he is the player with the most dribbles in the league, and he has four penalties for Palace this season. I'm very proud of my players and their performance."

He added: "I am pleased with the attitude of the players because in the first half we made a big effort in pressing a lot, recovering the ball and trying to score. In the second half it was difficult, but we competed until the end of the match. We didn't concede the chances we had conceded then in other games, I think we improved many situations and there are many positives."