Watford are currently struggling and while Troy Deeney played decently enough as a No. 10 for some time, his influence has diminished and that has halted any progress that Javi Garcia has made. Now they sit 9th in the Premier League and behind Leicester City and Wolverhampton Wanderers, with their top scorer being Roberto Pereyra with six goals and left-back Jose Holebas a far second with three.
They need reinforcements and while they won’t be able to splurge too much over the January window, there are a few stars that Javi Garcia can bring in.
Ben Foster is 35, Heurelho Gomes is 37 and Pontus Dahlberg is 19, which means that Watford don’t have a proper first team goalkeeper. And that is why Jack Butland is the perfect target for the Hornets, especially in the January transfer window. Furthermore, they could even get him for a cheap price.
Not only does the 25-year-old have Premier League experience and buckets of it, but given that he is playing in the Championship, Butland should relish the ability to test himself in England’s upper echelon once again. The fact that he is playing in the Championship would mean that Watford won’t have to pay much in terms of a transfer fee for the English international.
He would be the perfect replacement for Foster and a great January target for any Premier League side looking for an experienced and young goalkeeper.
The former Manchester United man has been offered a chance to go to China for a reported £11million-a-year. If he does decide to stay back in the Premier League, Watford should chase after his signature. While he has struggled so far this season, so have Crystal Palace and Zaha is one of their top commodities, with three goals and three assists so far.
That puts him on par with both Andre Gray and Troy Deeney, but the Ivorian has done it in fewer games as compared to the Watford strikers. What makes him a great target is the fact that he’s the kind of player who’s looking to improve his standing in world football. A move to Watford may not do that but it will allow him to play football at the highest level.
For Watford, however, it means that they will get a versatile, pacy and a goal-getting forward who can play across the front-line to replace a struggling trio who only managed 11 goals between them last season.