Watford captain Troy Deeney insists Arsenal lacked 'cojones' during last gasp defeat at Vicarage Road

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Watford captain Troy Deeney has spoken with brutal honestly about Arsenal's last-gasp defeat to his side at Vicarage Road, insisting Arsene Wenger's men simply lacked the 'cojones' to put up a fight. 

Deeney made the pivotal difference in the match after coming on in the second half and immediately disrupting the Watford back line.

Following a controversial spot-kick awarded by referee Neil Swarbrick after Brazilian star Richarlison came together with Hector Bellerin, Deeney stepped up to smash the ball home and pull his side level.

Troy Deeney spoke with brutal honesty about Arsenal following Watford's home victory

The big striker believes the Gunners lack 'cojones' and weren't up for the battle

A last gasp equaliser was enough for Watford to dramatically claim all three points and continue their best start to a Premier League campaign, though Wenger in the aftermath was keen to point immediately to poor refereeing decisions.

For Deeney, however, the reason of Arsenal's downfall is much more closer to home. 

'I've heard Wenger's already blaming that [the penalty] as the reason they lost,' Deeney said on BT Sport .

'Well, I'm not one to tell Mr. Wenger about himself, but the reason they lost wasn't due to one penalty.

Man of the match Deeney made a huge impact when he came on and turned the match around

The big striker kept his nerve as he slotted the ball home from 12 yards to level the scores

'Having a bit of cojones, I think the word is. Whenever I play against Arsenal – and this is just a personal thing – I go up and think "let me whack the first one, then we will see who wants it,'" Deeney added.

The striker admitted in his post-match interview that manager Marco Silva had given the players a 'roasting' at half-time and reminded each and every one of them just how far they have come already this season.

With this, Deeney entered the fray fired up and admitted it was his first challenge with Arsenal's Per Mertesacker which made him realise this was to be his day. 

Arsene Wenger instantly bemoaned the penalty decision but his side put in a lifeless display

'I came on today and jumped up with Mertesacker – I didn't even have to jump up actually – nodded it down and the crowd gets up. They all just backed off,' he said.

'For me, as a player, I just think happy days. That's my strength, so if you're going to let me do that against you, you're in for a tough afternoon,' he added.

The result sees Watford climb up into fourth place in the league after eight matches played, taking 15 points from a possible 24.