Player Focus: Deeney and Ighalo Partnership Key to Watford's Fine Form

Much has been made of Watford’s summer movements after their attempts in the transfer window to build a squad capable of consolidating their Premier League status. Having gone through no fewer than four managers in their promotion-attaining Championship campaign, a period of solidity is crucial in the wake of Quique Flores’ appointment as Hornets boss. The influx of new faces, though, had the potential to disrupt the dressing room harmony in a crucial season for Watford. 

The club signed 12 players permanently over the summer, while a further three joined on loan. A number of the new arrivals, though, have already settled in impressively. Etienne Capoue (7.39) and Nyom (7.26) - signings from Tottenham and Udinese, respectively - are two of Watford’s three best-rated players this season, according to WhoScored. However, it’s the old guard who continue to excel upon the Hornets' return to top-flight football.  

Heurelho Gomes is currently the team’s best-rated player, with a score of 7.40 also enough to take his place in WhoScored’s European team of the season so far. The Brazilian has been key to their commendable start to the campaign, having conceded only 5 goals so far, a figure bettered only by Tottenham (4) and Manchester City (2). 

With Gomes providing a solid last line of defence, a minor tinkering in attack has helped Watford. Earlier in the season Flores opted to field captain Troy Deeney as the lone striker, with Odion Ighalo featuring behind his teammate in a 4-2-3-1 formation. The idea behind this was to exploit Ighalo’s pace to make runs beyond Deeney, whose excellent hold up play and strength on the ball would help the Nigerian. In theory, the system should have worked. In practice, however, the duo struggled. Watford failed to net in the two games where Ighalo started behind Deeney in a number 10 role. 

Flores clearly noted the striking deficiencies and after the international break, swapped the pairing, with Deeney now supporting Ighalo. In the two games since, Watford have won back-to-back league games, overcoming Swansea and Newcastle United. The Hornets netted three goals in the victories, all scored by Ighalo, with Deeney assisting two of the three. The Deeney to Ighalo partnership is clearly profiting the club, with the former supplying for the latter currently representing the most profitable assist to goalscorer combination in the Premier League (3 goals) this season. 

Ighalo’s second goal against Newcastle took him to 4 for the season - only Callum Wilson and Riyad Mahrez (both 5) have scored more Premier League goals this term - while the 26-year-old’s 20 league goals in 2015 is more than any other player in the top four divisions of English football this calendar year. The reshuffling of the attack has helped Ighalo gain a WhoScored rating of 8.22 in September, the fourth highest of players to make two league appearances this month. It’s a substantial increase from August (6.41), and it’s a similar story with Deeney, with his rating increasing - albeit less dramatically - from 6.92 to 7.17. 

It’s fair to say both players now look far more comfortable in their revised positions than they did at the beginning of the season. Ighalo in particular has all but cemented a spot in the starting XI after starting the season on the bench, though coming off to score in the 2-2 draw with Everton on the opening day. His return to the forefront of Flores’ plans meant Watford had no qualms about loaning Matej Vydra to Reading, while loan signings Alessandro Diamanti and Victor Ibarbo are yet to get a proper look in with Ighalo and Deeney linking up effectively once more. 

The latter also looks happier having been deployed in a more withdrawn role after cutting a frustrated figure in the final third. Granted, Deeney’s 37 Championship starts last season came in attack, but he was more often than not partnered by one of Ighalo or Vydra. As a lone frontman, the isolation was not suiting his game and it’s no coincidence that his performances have improved on the back of Flores’ tweaking of the attack. 

Numerous newcomers can often have an adverse effect in the dressing room, though the summer arrivals have impressed during their short time at Vicarage Road. However, it’s the familiar faces whose fine form is ensuring Watford maintain their good start to the season. One defeat from six is a commendable showing by any team’s standards, but for a newly-promoted side with a manager unaccustomed to the rigours of Premier League football; it’s all the more impressive. The continued partnership of Ighalo and Deeney has been essential to that.

How important will the strike partnership of Deeney and Ighalo be to Watford's Premier League campaign? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below