Watford smashed Bristol City 6-0 in the Championship at the weekend, owing to some big team selection calls from Xisco Munoz.
The shock of the Championship weekend came at Vicarage Road. Watford went into half-time in their game against Bristol City with a four-goal lead, adding two more in the second-half to runaway with a 6-0 victory.
It’s a win that relieves a huge amount of pressure from Munoz’s shoulders and it’s thanks to a bit of a mix up in the starting line-up.
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The obvious being his decision to drop Troy Deeney in place of Joao Pedro. Deeney’s position in the side has become contested after a tough 18-month period for the striker, having been alleged to have a strong influence in some boardroom decisions.
Vladimir Ivic’s sacking came off the back of dropping Deeney and now Munoz has done the same, only to much greater effect – Watford looked as fluid as they have done in a long time v Bristol City, and now Deeney’s route into the starting line-up looks a difficult one.
But Deeney could be just the first of a few ‘big’ calls that Munoz makes in the coming weeks.
Ben Foster is another long-standing Watford veteran, but has sat out he last seven owing to a broken finger. Daniel Bachmann has come in and has featured in the last eight outings for Watford, keeping five clean sheets and proving worthy back up to the 37-year-old Foster.
Foster has led a contested season in the Championship so far and with his contract out at the end of next season, and his 38th birthday to come before the end of this campaign, Munoz will surely be considering who his next no.1 is and when he needs to give him that responsibility.
Whether Foster will walk back into the side or not remains to be seen. His return date is soon approaching and so Bachmann likely has a few more games to showcase his abilities to Munoz, and stake his claim to be Watford’s no.1 goalkeeper.
The early signs are positive but dropping Foster will be another huge and likely controversial call for Munoz to make. But it’s a decision that has to be made sooner or later, and with Bachmann knocking on the door it’ll become a more pressing issue for Munoz.
