WATFORD manager Quique Sanchez Flores is confident Heurelho Gomes will not let his mistakes at Leicester affect him.
The Brazilian goalkeeper was at fault for both Leicester goals as Watford lost 2-1 at the King Power Stadium on Saturday. He allowed Ngolo Kante's shot to slip through his hands for the opener and then brought down Jamie Vardy for a penalty, which the red-hot England striker converted to make it nine Premier League games in-a-row in which he had scored.
Gomes has been a model of consistency since joining the Hornets from Tottenham almost 18 months ago, but he held his hands up and accepted blame for the defeat, apologising via Twitter. Sanchez Flores, whose team host Manchester United when the Barclays Premier League resumes after the international break, said: "There's no need to be sorry.
"When we come back, he will be the same, back to normal. He is part of the soul of the team and is an amazing leader in the dressing room. More than any other day, we support him because we love this player. Heurelho is always ready to come and read passes. He was in the right position. If he was one metre forward, then it is a completely different play.
"Players make decisions and we have to accept what happens when they do. In one second, players have to make a decision and it's difficult. We wanted to score two goals to stop the idea that Heurelho is guilty. He is not guilty. This is football and you accept the situation.
"Heurelho's career is amazing. Not many players are able to stay in the Premier League this long. So we respect him a lot. If you are playing 12 years at a high level, then of course you will make mistakes. We have no doubts about Heurelho."
Like Gomes, Kante also gave away a penalty which allowed Troy Deeney to get Watford back into the game with 15 minutes remaining. It was a mixed afternoon for the midfielder after scoring his first goal for Leicester, but City boss Claudio Ranieri thinks the Frenchman, a summer signing from Caen, has settled well in England.
"He was struggling with the language [when he first arrived], but it was the same when I started at Chelsea. Football has only one language," said Ranieri.
"Kante is a hard worker and he plays for all his team-mates. He runs a lot. He's good and I'm very happy with him. He was unlucky with the penalty, but he was good."
