Watford Build Up

[Lighthouse]

So who do we start with?

 

I'm assuming it'll be something like;

 

Forster

 

Cédric - Fonte - VvD- Bertrand

 

Romeu

 

JWP - Hojbjerg

 

Tadic

 

Redmond - Long

[Batman]

what I think the team will be

 

Forster

 

Cedric Fonte VvD Targett

Romeu

JWP PeH

Tadic

Long Redmond

 

 

Subs, McCarthy, Bertrand, Yoshida, Clasie, Davis, Rodrigues, Austin

Edited 7 August, 2016 by Batman

[100% Saint]

All depends on the fitness levels of those who came back more recently. I wouldn't imagine Bertrand would be in because of his lack of a pre season due to his knock. Wouldn't mind seeing Pied play at left back if Bertrand doesn't feature!

[Matthew Le God]

Rodrigues

 

He is 72 years old!

 

 

[Shroppie]

So who do we start with?

 

I'm assuming it'll be something like;

 

Forster

 

Cédric - Fonte - VvD- Bertrand

 

Romeu

 

JWP - Hojbjerg

 

Tadic

 

Redmond - Long

Or Davis Clasie in the middle of the diamond.

 

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[teenagegsaint]

Think the XI will be:

 

Forster

Cedric, Yoshida, VVD, Bertrand

Romeu

Davis, Hojbjerg

Tadic

Redmond, Long

 

Such a weak side even with Fonte to be added, need 2 key players in my opinion.

[Lighthouse]

Think the XI will be:

 

Forster

Cedric, Yoshida, VVD, Bertrand

Romeu

Davis, Hojbjerg

Tadic

Redmond, Long

 

Such a weak side even with Fonte to be added, need 2 key players in my opinion.

 

Can't see how that's weak. The one we had 4 years ago was weak, back when we had Fox, Kelvin, Hooiveld and a teenage JWP in the side.

[teenagegsaint]

Can't see how that's weak. The one we had 4 years ago was weak, back when we had Fox, Kelvin, Hooiveld and a teenage JWP in the side.

 

Sorry, I mean in comparison to last seasons XI.

[Saint_clark]

Well it all depends how Redmond gets on doesn't it. If he can step up, be an effective player and replace Manes contribution then there's not THAT much difference...and from what I've seen I think our CM is stronger.

[Ultimatt]

Forster

Cedric Fonte VVD Bertrand(if fit)

Romeu Hojbjerg Davis

Tadic Long Redmond

 

They favor a 3-5-2 with Ighalo and Deeney playing off each other well. Having 3 CB's works well against our new formation. Will be an interesting 1st test.

[Lighthouse]

Well it all depends how Redmond gets on doesn't it. If he can step up, be an effective player and replace Manes contribution then there's not THAT much difference...and from what I've seen I think our CM is stronger.

 

I'd agree with this. Redmond for Mané is the only area I think may be weaker but the latter only turned up for about 15 games last year.

[Mr X]

Well it all depends how Redmond gets on doesn't it. If he can step up, be an effective player and replace Manes contribution then there's not THAT much difference...and from what I've seen I think our CM is stronger.

 

We continue to replace our best players on the cheap, sell a £34 million player & replace him with a £11 million player & hope for the best, it has worked well in the past but our luck has to run out soon, cant see us ever replacing like for like i.e investing the full amount of a players sale back into the squad replacing quality with equal quality

[Saint_clark]

We continue to replace our best players on the cheap, sell a £34 million player & replace him with a £11 million player & hope for the best, it has worked well in the past but our luck has to run out soon, cant see us ever replacing like for like i.e investing the full amount of a players sale back into the squad replacing quality with equal quality

 

Well no we won't replace like for like as we are aiming to be self sustaining and player sales helps with that. Nothing wrong with our MO right now...every £30million player was an unknown at some point, we just have to find them then.

[Mr X]

There's no way Davis won't play. We need him. New formation seems determined to limit him and tadic though it's a real shame.

 

We'll need Long to start the season well if we're to win. At the moment watfords attack looks more dangerous than ours but their New manager might be rubbish who knows

So might ours

[Shroppie]

So might ours

That's certainly not the impression he's given so far.

 

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[niceandfriendly]

Pray for a draw, would be a wonderful result with our current side.

[SaintSteve]

We continue to replace our best players on the cheap, sell a £34 million player & replace him with a £11 million player & hope for the best, it has worked well in the past but our luck has to run out soon, cant see us ever replacing like for like i.e investing the full amount of a players sale back into the squad replacing quality with equal quality

 

Except that Mane is irreplaceable..need two new players to provide what he gave the team..Redmond is maybe one but we have lost pace and creativity which requires a skill set we probably cannot afford.

Let's hope we come up with a gem from somewhere.

[Batman]

Except that Mane is irreplaceable..need two new players to provide what he gave the team..Redmond is maybe one but we have lost pace and creativity which requires a skill set we probably cannot afford.

Let's hope we come up with a gem from somewhere.

 

mane isnt irreplaceable at all.

[Pamplemousse]

I don't think we'll win, I think a draw is realistic. 0-0 or 1-1. I don't expect there to be many goals.

[Disco Stu]

Definitely play Steven Davis.

[Shroppie]

I don't think we'll win, I think a draw is realistic. 0-0 or 1-1. I don't expect there to be many goals.

Seriously? This isn't last season's team, but the defence is unchanged and should be solid.

 

Time will tell how the attacking options work, but with possibly an addition or two, it doesn't look bad to me.

 

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[Sour Mash]

Seriously? This isn't last season's team, but the defence is unchanged and should be solid.

 

Time will tell how the attacking options work, but with possibly an addition or two, it doesn't look bad to me.

 

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I fancy a draw next week, no great drama about that.

[SNSUN]

The line up will be very similar to today's starting line up. I can't see Puel making too many changes, even if we do bring in a new signing this week. The question is whether Fonte and Bertrand will start, after both have had little friendly action. I reckon Fonte might start, though Yoshida has done little wrong, but I feel Bertrand may need more training sessions after his injury.

 

So the back 5 read: Forster, Cedric, Fonte, VVD, Targett.

 

Whatever people say about our team at the moment, I feel our strongest back 5 of Forster, Cedric, Fonte, VVD and Bertrand is one of the strongest in the division. I don't think we'll have a problem conceding goals as long as that back 5 stay fit. There seems less quality in the replacements: McCarthy, Pied, Martina, Yoshida, Gardos, Stephens, Jones, Turnbull, Targett, McQueen etc but they can still do a job as a part time fill in. Ideally we don't want to lose any of our first choice back to injury.

 

As for midfield, the diamond will probably be: Romeu, Hojbjerg, Davis, Tadic.

 

No Wanyama is worrying, that big, strong midfield enforcer type is gone, but in Hojbjerg hopefully we have someone with better passing, control and composure, and hopefully without the hot attitude that got Wanyama the red cards. I'm a fan of Romeu but I'm not sure he's the man to replace Wanyama full time - but we will see. There is also Clasie, JWP and Reed pushing for a game too, so that should keep whoever is in the starting XI on their toes. There is a distinct lack of attacking midfielders in our team bar Tadic, so I hope Puel is looking to bring a couple in. That is our weak spot at the moment. We'll be fine for Watford, but it will show further through the season if we're solely relying on Tadic. Granted we brought in Redmond, but with Puel seeing him more playing up top, we need to strengthen that attacking midfield position, especially if it turns out the diamond doesn't work and we need to change formation.

 

Finally up top it will be: Long and Redmond.

 

Lots of pace there, not a great deal of goal scoring nous. The other option is to play a less mobile but better goal-scoring Austin, or JRod with questions still over his fitness and whether he'll ever be as good as he was. (I really hope he comes back as he was - he'd be like a new signing.)

 

All in all we're a top 10 team, but we need a couple of attacking signings if we want to be where we were last season. At a push we could use a steely midfield enforcer, but I can't see it happening.

[Lighthouse]

Except that Mane is irreplaceable..need two new players to provide what he gave the team..Redmond is maybe one but we have lost pace and creativity which requires a skill set we probably cannot afford.

Let's hope we come up with a gem from somewhere.

 

I wish we could have replaced him during last seasons trip to Bompey. Or the home defeat against Spurs, the trip to Palace, home to Everton and Villa and Sunderland, the Palace cup game... You get the idea.

 

In the past 2 years Lambert, Lallana, Alderweireld and Schneiderlin have all been 'irreplaceable'. We'll cope.

[striker]

The line up will be very similar to today's starting line up. I can't see Puel making too many changes, even if we do bring in a new signing this week. The question is whether Fonte and Bertrand will start, after both have had little friendly action. I reckon Fonte might start, though Yoshida has done little wrong, but I feel Bertrand may need more training sessions after his injury.

 

So the back 5 read: Forster, Cedric, Fonte, VVD, Targett.

 

Whatever people say about our team at the moment, I feel our strongest back 5 of Forster, Cedric, Fonte, VVD and Bertrand is one of the strongest in the division. I don't think we'll have a problem conceding goals as long as that back 5 stay fit. There seems less quality in the replacements: McCarthy, Pied, Martina, Yoshida, Gardos, Stephens, Jones, Turnbull, Targett, McQueen etc but they can still do a job as a part time fill in. Ideally we don't want to lose any of our first choice back to injury.

 

As for midfield, the diamond will probably be: Romeu, Hojbjerg, Davis, Tadic.

 

No Wanyama is worrying, that big, strong midfield enforcer type is gone, but in Hojbjerg hopefully we have someone with better passing, control and composure, and hopefully without the hot attitude that got Wanyama the red cards. I'm a fan of Romeu but I'm not sure he's the man to replace Wanyama full time - but we will see. There is also Clasie, JWP and Reed pushing for a game too, so that should keep whoever is in the starting XI on their toes. There is a distinct lack of attacking midfielders in our team bar Tadic, so I hope Puel is looking to bring a couple in. That is our weak spot at the moment. We'll be fine for Watford, but it will show further through the season if we're solely relying on Tadic. Granted we brought in Redmond, but with Puel seeing him more playing up top, we need to strengthen that attacking midfield position, especially if it turns out the diamond doesn't work and we need to change formation.

 

Finally up top it will be: Long and Redmond.

 

Lots of pace there, not a great deal of goal scoring nous. The other option is to play a less mobile but better goal-scoring Austin, or JRod with questions still over his fitness and whether he'll ever be as good as he was. (I really hope he comes back as he was - he'd be like a new signing.)

 

All in all we're a top 10 team, but we need a couple of attacking signings if we want to be where we were last season. At a push we could use a steely midfield enforcer, but I can't see it happening.

 

This pretty much sums it up for me too. Right now its pace over scoring (so to speak), we'll see if that changes over the next set of PL games.

[CWD]

Pray for a draw, would be a wonderful result with our current side.

 

I don't think we'll win, I think a draw is realistic. 0-0 or 1-1. I don't expect there to be many goals.

 

 

Try being a bit excited guys!

 

We're playing Watford not Barcelona

 

We finished 6th last season

 

We have a good side

[nta786]

How many of us would take a 1-0 win right now? I think a lot of us would!

 

But then how many would complain if we do win 1-0 saying 'our attack is toothless'/'we need two quality attacking signings'/'we sold mane to early'

 

I'd gladly win every game 1-0, and to me the result matters a lot more than style of football- that is probs just me though.

[Lighthouse]

How many of us would take a 1-0 win right now? I think a lot of us would!

 

But then how many would complain if we do win 1-0 saying 'our attack is toothless'/'we need two quality attacking signings'/'we sold mane to early'

 

I'd gladly win every game 1-0, and to me the result matters a lot more than style of football- that is probs just me though.

 

I can't understand anyone who wouldn't take a 1-0 win in any game TBH.

[SaintMB]

Jeez, we won all but one of our pre-season friendlies, some against decent sides and yet some people still think we're doomed from the off.

Watford drew against Woking, Lorient and lost against QPR ffs.

[ErwinK1961]

Jeez, we won all but one of our pre-season friendlies, some against decent sides and yet some people still think we're doomed from the off.

Watford drew against Woking, Lorient and lost against QPR ffs.

 

Nailed on home defeat then

[speedlemur]

Puel said in his extended post match interview that he doesn't expect Bertrand to be ready for the next match

 

 

He says Targett or maybe McQueen can step in

[Baird of the land]

We continue to replace our best players on the cheap, sell a £34 million player & replace him with a £11 million player & hope for the best, it has worked well in the past but our luck has to run out soon, cant see us ever replacing like for like i.e investing the full amount of a players sale back into the squad replacing quality with equal quality

 

It's a bizarre world in my opinion when people are considering 12/13 m purchases to be on the cheap.

[Shroppie]

It's a bizarre world in my opinion when people are considering 12/13 m purchases to be on the cheap.

Some people can't see beyond equating cost with quality and value.

 

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[Shroppie]

We continue to replace our best players on the cheap, sell a £34 million player & replace him with a £11 million player & hope for the best, it has worked well in the past but our luck has to run out soon, cant see us ever replacing like for like i.e investing the full amount of a players sale back into the squad replacing quality with equal quality

Hope for the best? You make it sound like we decide to buy a random "cheap" player and then hope, which is clearly ludicrous.

 

We identify potential, at sensible prices. And, as been proved again and again, get the benefit of a developing player before they either commit to Saints or leave for a profit. Where's the problem?

 

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[Appy]

How many of us would take a 1-0 win right now? I think a lot of us would!

 

But then how many would complain if we do win 1-0 saying 'our attack is toothless'/'we need two quality attacking signings'/'we sold mane to early'

 

I'd gladly win every game 1-0, and to me the result matters a lot more than style of football- that is probs just me though.

 

What an odd question.

[SuperSAINT]

I seem to recall reading that the new Watford coach favours 3 at the back, so will be interesting to see how the diamond does against that system.

[Batman]

I seem to recall reading that the new Watford coach favours 3 at the back, so will be interesting to see how the diamond does against that system.

 

Ah should be interesting. A back 3 can be a very wide set up.

[Shroppie]

I seem to recall reading that the new Watford coach favours 3 at the back, so will be interesting to see how the diamond does against that system.

If the Rb/Lb can get forward we could do well against that.

 

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[ErwinK1961]

If the Rb/Lb can get forward we could do well against that.

 

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Agreed, though conversely it can also mean that the RB/LB can get penned back by the oppo full back and midfield - Espanyol looked like they played 3-5-2 with wingbacks on Wednesday and had a bit of joy down the wide areas. I guess its why its important that we have quality full backs and a shame that Bertrand doesnt look like he will be fit.

[Saint_Ash]

We'll batter them. Dinlo's saying pray for a draw are comical hysterical wet fannies. Who have Watford got and what have they shown to beat us?

[fanimal]

Top of the League next Saturday night?

[Batman]

I think we will win at the weekend. But I think we are going to struggle a fair bit for the next few weeks or so.

[SuperSAINT]

Puel said in his extended post match interview that he doesn't expect Bertrand to be ready for the next match

 

 

He says Targett or maybe McQueen can step in

 

I'd say Targett gets the nod. As for Berty, I'm sure he'll be back sooner rather than later. Didn't we fast track him back into action last season too?

 

I seem to recall him being out for a chunk of the beginning of last season, then he suddenly played in a reserve game and was then thrown straight into the 1st team.

[Sour Mash]

I'm not a huge fan of Targett, but I thought he looked good today.

[eelpie]

what I think the team will be

 

Forster

 

Cedric Fonte VvD Targett

Romeu

JWP PeH

Tadic

Long Redmond

 

 

Subs, McCarthy, Bertrand, Yoshida, Clasie, Davis, Rodrigues, Austin

 

No sub keeper?

[SuperSAINT]

No sub keeper?

 

Bats named McCarthy on his bench.

[LGTL]

When did McQueen suddenly turn into a left back from an attacking player? Did Puel decide this?

[Kingsbridge Saint]

Watch as Mane turns into a $10M player from the $34M when he was with us and Redmond goes in the opposite direction. Imo Redmond is a more gifted and natural footballer, who was wasted at Norwich by a succession of over cautious managers. Fancy us to make a winning start for a change. 2-1 or 3-1.

[hutch]

When did McQueen suddenly turn into a left back from an attacking player? Did Puel decide this?

Watch his interview on the youtube channel if you want it from the horse's mouth.

[austsaint]

Watch as Mane turns into a $10M player from the $34M when he was with us and Redmond goes in the opposite direction. Imo Redmond is a more gifted and natural footballer, who was wasted at Norwich by a succession of over cautious managers. Fancy us to make a winning start for a change. 2-1 or 3-1.

 

I hope your third sentence is on the mark - the first and second are a bit of a laugh.