This article is part of Football League World's 'Terrace Talk' series, which provides personal opinions from our FLW Fan Pundits regarding the latest breaking news, teams, players, managers, potential signings and more…
FLW’s Watford fan pundit Justin Beattie has offered his verdict on which former Watford player would fit in well as part of Slaven Bilic’s side.
The Hornets are currently chasing promotion from the Championship under the Croatian manager.
Watford have gone into the World Cup break 4th in the table, five points adrift of the top two places.
This supporter believes that a prime Troy Deeney would fit in like a glove in the team’s pursuit of automatic promotion.
He has claimed that the striker’s leadership qualities would be a huge asset to this squad, which he feels currently lacks such a figure.
The forward’s presence on the pitch has been highlighted as a tool that this team could really benefit from having, especially as Deeney is someone that he believes was able to take hold of games by sheer force of will.
“We definitely need a leader in our current 11,” Beattie told Football League World.
“We need a player that will grab games by the scruff of the neck and that will show some heart.
“So I would love to see Troy Deeney in his prime back in our current 11 because we do miss having a big presence as a captain in the team at the moment.
“So my choice would be Troy Deeney.”
Deeney spent over a decade at Vicarage Road, almost appearing 400 times for the club in that period.
The now 34-year old is currently with fellow Championship rivals Birmingham City, where he continues to be a consistent presence in the side.
The Verdict
Deeney’s consistency in front of goal during his prime years is certainly an asset any Championship club would love to have.
The forward bagged 21 goals during the club’s promotion campaign of 2014-15, and managed a double figure tally in the Premier League three times during his time with Watford.
While the team now does have some exciting attacking talents, the likes of Joao Pedro and Ismaila Sarr have yet to find the same ruthlessness and consistency in front of goal.
Deeney continues to be a big presence for Birmingham, where he has contributed three goals from 21 appearances so far this season.