The Football Manager Cup has been shared after Watford conceded an injury-time penalty to draw 2-2 at AFC Wimbledon in their second pre-season friendly.

The Hornets fell behind in the 12th minute when Callum Kennedy slotted home from the penalty spot after Ikechi Anya had fouled Tom Elliott, but fortune favoured the visitors ten minutes before the interval when a Joe McDonnell clearance struck Odion Ighalo and rebounded into the net.

Watford started the second period with greater intent and after Almen Abdi had hit the crossbar from a free-kick, Fernando Forestieri followed in to score after McDonnell had kept out a Troy Deeney header.

Quique Sanchez Flores’ side should have gone on to secure the win but in injury time Juan Carlos Paredes fouled Andy Barcham in the area and George Francomb converted the hosts’ second spot-kick of the afternoon.

The visitors improved as an attacking unit after a first half in which the 4-2-3-1 formation had looked disjointed in the main. The match also saw Jose Holebas make his first appearance for the Hornets while their latest acquisition, Valon Behrami, watched on from the stands.

Flores made two changes from the side which started Wednesday’s 4-0 friendly victory at St Albans City, and opted for a bold-looking attacking front four.

Gabriele Angella and Ben Watson dropped out, the former as a precautionary measure after picking up a knock, and their places were taken by Sebastian Prodl and Matej Vydra, who was part of the four-pronged strike force that also included Forestieri, Igahlo and Deeney.

It was the hosts who began marginally the better in a game that started at a decent tempo, as Prodl and Heurelho Gomes were able to deal comfortably with a couple of high crosses into the box.

The Hornets’ first sight of an opening came in the fifth minute when a sweeping long pass from Etienne Capoue found Daniel Pudil on the left and his first-time delivery found Vydra on the edge of the 18-yard box, but play broke down after that.

But it was the Dons who made the breakthrough in the 12th minute when Anya let Tom Elliott get in behind on the left side of the penalty area and despite trying to avoid making contact, the striker was tripped by the Scottish international. Kennedy made no mistake from 12 yards, sending Gomes the wrong way to make it 1-0.

Watford’s first attempt on goal came four minutes later when Vydra let a ball in from the right run across him to Deeney, whose strike from the edge of the area was deflected up and over McDonnell’s bar.

Flores’ men continued to look for a way back into the game, but their approach play wasn’t quite clicking and too often the final pass would go astray in a 4-2-3-1 system that wasn’t playing to the strengths of Ighalo and Vydra.

The game’s next opportunity arrived in the 31st minute and it came for the hosts as Kennedy’s cross from the left picked out the considerable frame of Adebayo Akinfenwa, but ‘the beast’ was unable to keep his header underneath the bar.

But three minutes later the Hornets were level, albeit in rather bizarre circumstances.

There was no danger when McDonnell went to clear downfield but he thundered his kick straight into Ighalo, who knew nothing about it, and the ball looped back over the stranded goalkeeper and into his net to level the scores at 1-1.

McDonnell then had to move sharply off his line to thwart Forestieri before, at the other end, Elliott came back out from close to the goalline before hitting a right-footed shot which Gomes had to tip over. The Dons striker had another chance moments later but this time he fired well over.

McDonnell was forced into action again four minutes before the interval to make a smart stop from a low Ighalo drive; the ball falling nicely for him after Vydra had tried to slide in Deeney.

Another opportunity came and went for the Hornets before the interval when Forestieri was released in the 18-yard box but he perhaps tried to be a bit too deliberate with his attempted left-footed finish and McDonnell was again equal to it.

Still the chances kept coming for the visitors in the closing stages of the opening half, with a long ball downfield causing problems for the Dons defence as Deeney sought to get on the end of it and it again broke for Forestieri, whose first-time right-footed effort was deflected behind.

Giedrius Arlauskis and Ben Watson were introduced for Gomes and Vydra at the start of the second half while the Dons, as they had indicated before kick off, completely changed their 11 players with the exception of McDonnell.

Watford almost took the lead six minutes after the restart when, after Forestieri had been fouled to the left of centre, Abdi curled the free-kick over the wall and watched as it struck the bar, bounced down but not the right side of the goalline as far as he was concerned.

Within a minute though, the Hornets did have a second goal as Abdi’s cross from the right was headed back across goal by Deeney, McDonnell did well to save it but Forestieri was alive to the opportunity and bundled in the follow-up.

No sooner had the Hornets gone 2-1 up, they could have been pegged back when Arlauskis failed to get to a cross from the right, Barcham headed towards the unguarded net but Prodl got back to hook the ball away.

Abdi shot over at the other end as an entertaining start to the second half continued and the Hornets were close to a third goal in the 60th minute when a fine Deeney pass released Anya on the right and his low cross was met by the stretching Ighalo, who was just unable to turn it into the net.

Wimbledon thought they had equalised two minutes later when Adebayo Azeez forcefully bundled Pudil off the ball on the right side of the area before seeing his right-footed shot deflected past Arlauskis. But the referee did disallow the goal for the foul.

Anya was replaced by Paredes in the 65th minute and after Watson had seen a shot saved, McDonnell had to go to ground again to deal with a Forestieri effort from outside the area.

Watford’s fourth change came in the 71st when Lewis McGugan came on for Ighalo. The players were already having their second drinks break of the game at that stage and Flores decided to take the chance to venture onto the pitch to pass on some instructions.

After Capoue had seen a long-range free-kick saved, new signing Holebas came on for his first appearance in a Watford shirt in place of Pudil and then Tommie Hoban replaced Prodl.

Wimbledon continued to look for an equaliser though, and Jake Reeves fired over following a scramble, before another effort from distance was sent over the top.

Diego Fabbrini was given a run out in the closing stages as he replaced Forestieri and, fresh from signing a three-year deal, Dennon Lewis came on for Abdi.

That should have been that but in injury-time Paredes let Barcham get the wrong side of him close to the touchline and clumsily bundled him over, given the Dons an opportunity to level from the penalty spot. The opportunity was gratefully taken by Francomb, who confidently sent Arlauskis the wrong way to make it 2-2 and ensure the trophy was shared.

AFC Wimbledon (first half): McDonnell; Fuller, Nightingale, Harrison, Kennedy; Beere, Bulman, Toonga; Fitzpatrick, Akinfenwa, Elliott.

AFC Wimbledon (second half): McDonnell; Pilbeam, Osborne, Sweeney; Francomb, Reeves, Meades, Barcham, Rigg; Oakley, Azeez.

Watford: Gomes (Arlauskis 46); Anya (Paredes 65), Prodl (Hoban 82), Cathcart, Pudil (Holebas 76); Capoue, Abdi (Lewis 90); Forestieri (Fabbrini 89), Ighalo (McGugan 71), Vydra (Watson 46), Deeney. Not used: Gilmartin, Doherty, Belkalem, Byers, Smith, Dyer, Jakubiak.

Attendance: 2,988 (1,307 Watford fans).