Walter Mazzarri has blamed injuries for Watford's embarrassing 5-0 mauling at the hands of Manchester City on Sunday.

The outgoing Walter Mazzarri did not enjoy the happiest of exits from Watford after seeing his side suffer a 5-0 defeat at home against Manchester City and the Italian would most certainly not have wanted to end his tenure with the Hornets on such a sour note.

Nonetheless, Mazzarri defended the embarrassing loss by stating that he was forced to field an under strength side due to injuries and added that his side could not have done any better on the day.

The 55-year-old said: "Look at the players we had today. We had 6 injured players in the same position, and I would like to see a team that would do better.

"It's not a matter of athletic preparation or condition, because when they were injured I did not push them - that's the truth, these are the facts. These are not excuses, but they are facts - look at the line-ups we had throughout the season. I thank the players. With the strength we had on the pitch, it was all we could do."