Josh Sargent was on the scoresheet as Norwich City squeezed past Watford, while other Americans contributed to their teams’ fortunes in the first round of the English League Cup.
Watford 1-2 Norwich City
Norwich City scored twice in the first half and did enough to hold on as they beat Watford at Vicarage Road to book their place in the next round.
Josh Sargent, who wore the captain’s armband for a second game, played 62 minutes, completing 69 percent of passing and winning two duels.
The 25-year-old opened the scoring for the visitors 10 minutes into the contest. Papa Diallo gained control of the ball and dribbled it into the 18-yard box from the left side before centering to his strike to sweep past goalkeeper Egil Selvik.
Marcelino Nunez doubled Norwich’s lead in the 24th minute when he fired a long-range shot on target that Selvik couldn’t control.
Watford cut the deficit in the 68th minute thanks to Kwadwo Baah’s effort, but Norwich had more than enough to keep them at bay.
Coventry City 1-0 Luton Town
A goal in the second half was good enough for Coventry as they beat Luton Town at the CBS Arena.
Haji Wright started and played 63 minutes for the Sky Blues, completing 80 percent of his passes and winning four duels.
After a scoreless first half, the hosts finally ended the deadlock in the 57th minute when Wright collected a through ball from Raphael Borges Rodrigues and then centered it into the path of Ellis Simms for the tap-in.
Notes
Dominic Dwyer played the first half for Mansfield Town and recorded an assist as the Stags blanked Chesterfield in a 2-0 win.
Southampton ensured their passage to the second round following a 1-0 win over Northampton Town. Damion Downs started and played 63 minutes for the Saints.
George Campbell played the full game for West Bromwich Albion as they were knocked out on penalties by Derby County after a 1-1 tie.
Charlton Athletic came away with a 3-1 win over Stevenage, with Charlie Kelman playing 25-plus minutes.
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