Captain Manuel Almunia believes youthful inexperience of the big occasion was the overriding factor behind Watford's frustrating below-par performance in yesterday's npower Championship play-off final defeat to Crystal Palace.

Amid all the comings and goings and ups and downs at Watford these past few years – the greatest upheaval materialising since the Pozzo family bought the club last June – one player has remained a constant, reassuring presence. Lloyd Doyley expects to take his place in defence at Wembley tomorrow for the 408th time since Gianluca Vialli summoned him into the first team in September 2001.

Manuel Almunia makes double save from an injury-time penalty before Troy Deeney sends Watford back to Wembley

The Calvin Report: He was the club's most unlikely recruit since wine waiter Gary Plumley

Attention: There is an unclaimed lottery ticket in Hull area.

Midfielder has been in exceptional form this term

This weekend just happens to mark the 20th anniversary of the pivotal Old Trafford occasion when Steve Bruce rose to head home two late goals for a comeback win against Sheffield Wednesday which put Manchester United back on course for their first League title in 26 years.

West Brom head coach Steve Clarke insists his side still have plenty to play for during the next two months and will not allow the season to fizzle out.

Having started the season with seven wins from eight league games, and without a single defeat in the Premier League, Chelsea have now lost their last two fixtures.

Leicester City consolidated their position at the top of the Championship last night with a 1-0 win over Brighton. Andy King's 10th-minute goal earned a sixth win in seven games for Nigel Pearson's side.

Experienced new Italian owners will tap scouting network to bring loan talent to Vicarage Road

Watford's potential takeover by the Pozzo family is now off, according to current owner Laurence Bassini.

The Pozzo family, the owners of the Serie A club Udinese and the Spanish club Granada, have agreed "in principle" to buy Watford.

It is one of the signings of the Premier League era, one that ranks up there with the acquisition of Thierry Henry by Arsenal or Roy Keane by Manchester United. For all the money that has been thrown around by Roman Abramovich in the last nine years, Chelsea have probably never spent a better £11m than that which they paid for Frank Lampard almost exactly 11 years ago.