AFCB have to be mindful of Watford's ambition

Last week was not a great start for Watford or AFC Bournemouth. A home draw, salvaging a point in the last minute to Liverpool will be seen as the better result, but Marco Silva will have imagined an even better start and he'll bring his Watford side to Dean Court knowing they can win.

Watford will have a few familiar faces but they have brought in some good new players.

While the return to fitness of Troy Deeney is one concern for the Cherries, Watford have done some summer recruiting that has been less Italian driven than most recent summers for them and it's probably given them a better balance in quality in every area of the pitch. While Gomez still started in goal against Liverpool, the Hornets have brought in Daniel Bachmann as a back up along with Pantilimon and in midfield they now have Nathaniel Chalobah from Chelsea, Kiko Femenia from Alaves and Will Hughes from Derby County. Fermenia is still waiting to make his Premier League debut having been a sub last match.

André Gray is their big summer signing from Burnley, which Sky Sports say was worth £18m. It's a staggering amount for a striker that is still learning his way in this league but such are the prices now and Gray will just have to concentrate on his goals. Having worked his way up from non-league Hinckley, he'll know how hard AFCB's players have worked to get where they are today and he'll be eager to impress for his new club.

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Italian, Stefano Okaka only played 18 games for Watford last season but he's already got a goal in his first match this season and should keep his place for this match. Frenchman, Abdulaye Doucouré was also in the team for half of last season on loan and was their standout player in midfield last weekend, with lots of flair and trickery. Tom Cleverly also signed permanently for the Hornets over the summer.

So they have a good mix of players that have something to prove and experience of the Premier League. Watford can't be underestimated and their ambition has already been seen in battling for a draw against Liverpool. 

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In other news, Joe Quigley has joined Newport County on loan until January.

Connor Mahoney and Emerson Hyndman played in an U21 game against a Brentford side yesterday so Mahoney is likely to be uninvolved in today's game. Marc Pugh will probably have a spot on the bench. A win for AFCB today is already seeming very important with Man City and Arsenal coming up! UTCIAD!