Watford seem to be taking care of themselves amongst the big and formidable top half of the Premier League table just fine. Walter Mazzarri came in with high expectations and he hasn’t disappointed. The Hornets yearned for an encore of last season with the added wish of a top half finish. And by the looks of it, they have the potential to challenge for their dreams and with a bit of luck and proper application they will be in and around their targets.
The whole team has functioned as a unit and other than Capoue, no one has yet been able to stand-out in the band of yellow. The defence is a cause of worry however and they need to sort things out at the back soon.
Let us look at a couple of stars and duds of their season so far.
STARS
ETIENNE CAPOUE
The 28-year old defensive midfielder has been a revelation this season. And before you mistake it for some N’Golo Kanté encore, most of his bravado has been gathered while playing in an advanced role behind the striker.
With options limited to the manager initially, he turned to the burly Capoue to fill in and what a move that turned out to be! He has scored 4 vital goals and has one assist which helped build Watford’s unlikely momentum. Even the player is now a tad more confident which bodes well for the team.
JOSE HOLEBAS
The left wing-back has been a regular fixture for the side and has been key in their play down the left-hand side. Holebas has managed to keep Zuniga out of the team and his adventurous play has given Watford another dimension to their play. He has already scored 2 goals and has laid on an assist too.
DUDS
ODION IGHALO
Ighalo has failed to reach anywhere near the heights of last season. There was a lot of belief in the front two of Ighalo and Deeney replicating last year’s camaraderie which was instrumental in Watford’s over-achieving season. But while Deeney has been at it and despite not being fluent he is chipping away. But Ighalo has a solitary goal and an assist in 10 matches which has rendered the front-two useless on a number of occasions.
VALON BEHRAMI
He has played on the left-side of a 3-man midfield and while he hasn’t been shockingly poor on the face of it, there is huge scope for improvement. He has been a level below his teammates and has to toughen up defensively and offensively, with half-baked performances been the norm from him. He has been weak in duels and hasn’t been successful in controlling the tempo of the play.
