Ipswich Town manager Mick McCarthy has ridiculed the comments made by Watford counterpart Slavisa Jokanovic following last Saturday’s 1-0 win for the Blues at Portman Road.

The Serbian claimed afterwards that ‘my team played many minutes precisely how Ipswich wanted us to’, going on to refer to physicality and long balls.

Watford committed 18 fouls to Ipswich’s eight though, with Joel Ekstrand’s reckless lunge on Jonny Williams – for which he was only booked – ending the Crystal Palace loanee’s game and sidelining him for a month. Town also dominated the possession stats.

“It was a cold, cynical, ruthless, violent tackle which deserved a red card,” said McCarthy. “And I saw the comments that their coach made afterwards, which he also said to me, about how they had to be tougher, ‘especially against teams like Ipswich’.

“I said to him ‘oh really? As far as I’m aware there was only one team who had a player carried off, and that was Ipswich’.

“And then I saw his comments afterwards on The Football League Show about how they started playing like Ipswich and hitting long balls and working hard.

“Well, for one, I’d ask what’s wrong with working hard? And I’ve had a look at the stats and we murdered them actually.

“Somebody else isn’t happy getting beaten by unfancied, under the radar Ipswich. Isn’t it great?”

Dean Gerken and Cole Skuse were the only senior players sidelined with injuries (both groin) last weekend, but McCarthy expects them to be available for selection for the trip to Bournemouth a week on Saturday.