Watford vs Everton Preview: Silva locks horns with former club

This is no normal Premier League game — Watford and Everton face off with the underlying tale of current Toffees manager Marco Silva intensifying the nature of the clash.

The Portuguese, formerly head coach of the Hornets, was toppled from his position at Vicarage Road after what the club described as: “an unwarranted approach by a league rival for his services”. The rest, as they say, is history.

Watford enter the tie having failed to win in their last three league games, two of which — against Burnley and last weekend’s trip to Brighton & Hove Albion — have ended goalless, with a narrow defeat to title-chasers Tottenham Hotspur sandwiched in between.

However, the Hornets have largely enjoyed a fruitful campaign under Silva’s successor, Javi Gracia, seated in 8th with a minority of the season left to play.

Meanwhile, despite a prosperous pre-season providing promise for 2018/19, the Portuguese has endured a rather more strenuous start to life at Goodison Park, despite sitting just one place and one point behind Watford.

Everton have lost four of their last five Premier League encounters and were eliminated from the FA Cup at the hands of Millwall during that run, prompting many to question Silva’s managerial credentials, although majority shareholder Farhad Moshiri has reassured fans of his backing for the 41-year old in recent weeks.

Previous meetings

The reverse tie at Goodison in December exemplified the intensity and drama which are so often associated with England’s top flight. Everton took the lead through former Hornets forward Richarlison, before an own-goal from Seamus Coleman and a towering header from Abdoulaye Doucouré gave Watford a second-half advantage. Ben Foster saved Gylfi Sigurdsson’s penalty to keep his side ahead, however Lucas Digne equalised in the 96th minute with an inch-perfect free-kick.
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In this fixture last year, Hornets captain Troy Deeney hammered home a late winner to prolong the improvement in results brought by Gracia just one month into his tenure with the club.

Overall, Watford have an appalling record against Everton, winning four and drawing the same amount in 27 historical meetings between the clubs. However, since promotion from the Championship in 2015, they have only been defeated twice by the Toffees.

View from the dugout

Ahead of what promises to be a feisty affair given the nature of the relationship between the two clubs, Gracia has played down the outstanding significance of the tie, insisting that it will be business as usual for him and his Watford side.

“It is nothing different to other games. We are concentrated on the game, I am concentrated on the game and when we prepare the games we are not thinking about the coaches.

“I think our players have the motivation in all the games, not in this one especially.”

Silva, meanwhile, is anticipating nothing less than hostility from the crowd at Vicarage Road, but also contends that this match is no different to any other.

“What I can tell you about Watford is it will be, for sure, a tough game,” he said. “And if you ask me about the reception, in football we have to be ready for everything.

“It is normal when you build a career. I’m ready for everything and my job is to make my players also ready for a tough match.

“Like normal, it will be decided on the pitch and as normal, the best team will win. That is the most important thing for me and it is my job to prepare my players for that.”

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Team news

Watford should be able to call upon Doucouré. The 26-year old was linked with a move away from the club in January, and has missed the last four games with a knee injury. Full-back Kiko Femenía is also available having recovered from a hamstring problem.

Top scorer Roberto Pereyra remains absent as a result of the injury he sustained against Tottenham. Isaac Success and Sebastian Prödl are also sidelined.

Leighton Baines and Phil Jagielka are both out of contention to feature for Everton.

The Toffees are also doubtful about Yerry Mina who has a foot problem, though Richarlison and Sigurdsson could earn recalls having been excluded from the starting 11 for the midweek defeat to Manchester City.