Slavisa Jokanovic’s men have made a slow start to their Premier League campaign. The 3-0 defeat at the hands of Manchester City last weekend marked the Cottagers’ third defeat of the ongoing season, having previously gone down to Crystal Palace and Tottenham Hotspur. The highlight of their current campaign came in the 4-2 win over Burnley when Aleksandar Mitrovic scored a brace with his head.
Although Fulham have made a lukewarm start to their season with only a solitary win from five games, they do not have much to worry about when they face Watford on Saturday. Not denying the fact that Watford have been in tremendous form but Fulham have also shown a lot of promise in the defeats against Spurs and City.
The club’s plush financial backing helped them secure mega-money deals for Aleksandar Mitrovic (loan deal made permanent), Jean Michael Seri and Andre Schurrle (on loan).
Much to the joy of the manager, all his new signings have come good so far and have hit the ground running in the Premier League. While Mitrovic has surpassed all expectations, Seri has not only established himself as the team’s midfield powerhouse but has also built a good reputation in England for his all-around excellence in the midfield. Meanwhile, Schurrle has been a lively presence down the left and already has two goals to his name.
Jose Holebas has been one of Watford’s standout performers of the season along with Troy Deeney. The flying left-back has been involved in five of Watford’s ten goals so far, scoring one himself and setting up another four for his teammates.
However, despite his contribution to the attack, he has often left open spaces for the opposition to exploit. Although he has commendable recovery pace, he has left far too much space for the opposition to launch attacks from the left.
Andre Schurrle has been in impressive form and had a good game against Manchester City. Schurrle should relish the luxury of having someone like Ryan Sessegnon as his partner down the left. Sessegnon must start the game as a left-back and his presence will offer Schurrle enough assistance with his overlapping runs.
Although Mitrovic has been in red-hot form, he did struggle against the strength of Nicolas Otamendi in the previous game. Truth be told, he could once again have a tough day against the in-form duo Christian Kabasele and Craig Cathcart in the heart of Watford’s defence.
The duel between Schurrle and Holebas could go a long way in deciding the tie between these two evenly-matched teams this weekend.