match preview: watford
Leeds United boss Jesse Marsch labels opponents Watford as “lethal in transition” as he prepares his side for the trip to Vicarage Road on Saturday
Marsch was quick to highlight the Hornets’ presence on the break despite their 19th place position in the table and warned of their ability with vast amounts of space.
It’s a crucial game where three points will look to put us to relative safety with a tough spell against Manchester City, Arsenal, and Chelsea all before the season is done and dusted.
“They’re more dangerous when we have the ball. It’s a little bit tricky preparing, they have lots of very good 1v1 players,” says Marsch.
Forward Joe Gelhardt suffered a dead leg in the U23s win over Crystal Palace on Monday, but Marsch expects the forward to be involved on Saturday, too.
“He hasn’t trained every day, but he will train tomorrow and should be available, we will evaluate it as we go,” adds Marsch.
It will be our first trip to Vicarage Road for over six years since our 1-0 defeat in the FA Cup Fifth Round back when Steve Evans was in charge.
The corresponding fixture earlier in the campaign was also a low-scoring one with a 1-0 win to the Whites thanks to a Diego Llorente first-half effort.
With much change in both camps since that fixture back in October, Marcelo Bielsa and Xisco have both been replaced with the irrepressible Roy Hodgson in charge of the Hertfordshire side.
Focus will most definitely be on the task at hand and the management will be first to admit that there’s still work to be done this campaign, especially after Wednesday’s 3-2 victory for Burnley at home to Everton.
“The reality is we’re still in a relegation battle, but watching the table isn’t important or worry about the external situation.
“None of us think we’re done or a completed project, we’re pushing to be better,” adds Marsch.
Since his arrival, there’s definitely been a bounce, and with two wins and a draw from the last three, the form would suggest we’re in a good way, something the boss can be quietly content with.
Marsch continues: “In general, there’s a confidence, more than a month ago.
“It was easy to see the stress on the player’s faces, I was trying to relieve the tension, focus on results and not the worries on the table.
“There are so many details, more into behaviours and understanding, doing sessions that focus on these exact things.
“The players understand it, they grasp it and put it together every day.”
Watford have only had two Premier League home wins all season, and are without one since mid-November. A crushing 3-0 defeat to Norwich City has also been a low point in this desperate spell.
A surprise win away at Southampton last month proves that there’s a performance in this Hornets line-up, just lacking all kinds of consistency.
With the much-needed return of Kalvin Phillips and Liam Cooper to the squad too, the journey back up the M1 will be extremely satisfying should we get the all-important three points.