City’s FA Cup campaign is about to begin. VMC’s Skoorb touches base with Vital Watford’s Tom Bodell before Saturday’s Etihad Stadium third round clash…
1. Who is your favourite Watford player of all time and why?
‘I’ve only been going to Watford games for 12 years so my choice is somewhat limited. I would therefore have to go for Heidar Helguson, now (unfortunately) of Cardiff City. He never had the largest quantity of technique, but he worked so hard and did the unattractive graft so well that it allowed those around him to play. For a player under six foot in height he scored a lot of a headers and was only very rarely beaten in the air.
‘Supporters want a player who cares for a club as they do and Heidar always seemed to care about Watford.’
2. Zola remains one of my favourite all time players & seems to be a thoroughly nice bloke. How do you rate him so far & do you think he can take you up to the PL?
‘So far, so good. He’s proven himself to be quite tactically astute and is not afraid to make big calls. We rested five players against Charlton on New Years Day and lost 4-3. However, as he correctly told the Official Site afterwards, he had done exactly the same against Leeds – a game we won 6-1. We’ve also switched from 4-3-3 at the beginning of the season to 3-5-2, a move which has paid off spectacularly, utilising the best qualities of our two wing-backs, Marco Cassetti and Daniel Pudil.
‘Will he get us promoted? It’s a topsy-turvy division and I don’t think there’s any one team which is significantly better than the others – Cardiff might be seven points clear but they have a rich history of blowing leads. Aside from them, I think almost anyone who isn’t fighting relegation has a good chance of getting into the Play-Off’s; it’s about holding your nerve and making sure you put together a good run at the right time.’
3. If there was one player in your club’s squad that you would want to keep above all others who would it be and why?
‘Almen Abdi is superb. I can’t remember the last time we had such a good ball-playing midfielder with vision, intelligence and an exemplary range of passing. He is the very definition of a playmaker and most good things in the side go through him.
‘I would have said Nathaniel Chalobah (on-loan from Chelsea), but realistically that is never going to happen – he’s far too good!’
4. If you could pick one player from the Manchester City squad who would it be and why?
‘Vincent Kompany is a magnificent defender. I don’t think we’re necessarily weak at the back, but we have had to chop-and-change a bit – he’d be a classy addition to any English side.’
5. What makes Watford a special club to support?
‘We’re a family club and despite the continual change of ownership and the fact that the Pozzo family are not British, we remain so. The board are doing some good things in looking at ways to get more people through the gate and family days are part of that.
‘On top of that we have long been a club which produces some terrific homegrown talent, the latest of which includes the imperious defender Tommie Hoban and rangy midfielder Connor Smith – both of whom have enjoyed a much greater impact this season than they would surely have ever dreamed of, especially when you consider the number of additions.’
6. Time machine time – fast forward a season and Watford can either win the FA Cup Final or remain in the Premier League. Which would you choose?
‘Remaining in the Premier League might be where the money is, but winning our first trophy is the only answer I’m going to give! FA Cup every day of the week.
What do you predict the score will be on Saturday?
‘3-1 to City.’
Very many thanks and respect going out to Tom and the Vital Watford team.
Click Here To Read Vital Watford – Opposing View: Manchester City
UPCOMING FIXTURES:
all times East Manchester
Sa 05 Jan 15h00 Watford, The Etihad, FAC 3
Su 13Jan 16h00 Arsenal, The Emirates, PL
Sa 19Jan 15h00 Fulham, The Etihad, PL
Tu 29Jan 19h45 QPR, Loftus Road
Share this article
