On Sunday the Watford Hornets travel to north London to take on Tottenham Hotspur in the Premier League, so what can we expect from the match?
With a chance to go to the top of the table on Sunday, we know the Watford coming to Tottenham Hotspur Stadium is a big game for the Spurs. However, after coming back up from the Championship, this is not the same Watford side that went down a couple of seasons back. Here are three things you can expect from Sunday’s game.
Tottenham is going to dominate the ball
Coming into this weekend’s games, only Burnley (927) has had fewer touches in the Premier League this season than have Tottenham Hotspur (1061). As most fans know, this is not because the Spurs want to park the bus and concede control, rather it has been the nature of their two games.
First, was the Manchester City match in the opener where we always knew Tottenham was going to see a whole lot less of the ball. In week two although the opposition was not at City’s level, the Wolves are a very aggressive team, who want the ball and Tottenham was on the road. The recipe in both matches has led to little possession of the ball thus far for the Spurs.
On Sunday, in Watford, Tottenham faces the team with the third-fewest touches of the ball this season, as the Hornets have 1113 touches. Whereas Tottenham has a solid reason for the lack of possession having played Brighton on the road and Villa at home, the story is different for the Hornets.
The Spurs have simply looked to counter, Watford has struggled to maintain possession. While we should not expect the same kind of ball domination we saw midweek against Pacos de Ferreira, where Tottenham had 70.6% of possession, we should expect a lot more than what Spurs had against both City and the Wolves.
Watford is going to look to counter on the right
I sure hope Sergio Reguilón got a good night’s sleep on Saturday because it is quite likely he is going to be a busy man on Sunday. Whenever Watford gains possession, expect them to look to counter quickly against the Spurs on the right using Ismaila Sarr.
Sarr is a Senegalese winger who is pacey and loves to dribble. However, unlike Adama Traore whom Tottenham faced last week, Sarr plays primarily on the right and Sarr is a good finisher. Sarr was absolutely fantastic for Watford last season in the Championship scoring 13 goals and adding 10 assists, serving as one of the main cogs in the promotion campaign. Sarr’s two-goal and three-assist match against Bristol really was something.
While Watford still has Troy Deeney on the team, he has been recovering from injury and has seen limited action this season. Instead, Sarr is likely to be crossing balls to Emmanuel Dennis a young Nigerian striker. Dennis is not going to necessarily provide a lot of hold-up play, but like Sarr, he loves to dribble and run.
Together, Sarr and Dennis should keep the Tottenham defense on their toes and under pressure. The center-halves are not going to have all day on the ball, so moving the ball past that defense and into the midfield will be one of the keys to the Spurs’ success.
Expect several goals on Sunday
Besides being the only team to have not yet dropped points on this young Premier League season, Tottenham is also the only team to not concede as of yet. Whether or not the Spurs concede to Watford the fans should expect some goals.
In the two matches that Watford has played this season, there have been 7 goals, with the Hornets. Watford did manage to score three goals against Aston Villa but they have conceded two goals in both their matches. that trend is likely to continue on Sunday as the Spurs should have ample opportunities to score and Watford is likely to have one or two themselves.
Tottenham should take it to Watford in the end
Expect Watford to end up packing in deep and trying to hit Sarr and Dennis on the counter. This will put a premium on good possession in tight spaces, something the Spurs have been improving on. The real question is if the Spurs can keep another clean sheet more than if they will score.
Ultimately, Tottenham is a better team than Watford and should win on Sunday. Likely the Hornets will have a few turnovers that lead to some big goal-scoring chances for Tottenham, which Harry Kane and the team should capitalize on, leading to the dream 3-0 start we all want to see.