Two-striker formation benefits in-form Watford
Quietly sitting in ninth, four points shy of a Europa League bid and nine points clear of nearest promotion brethren Norwich City, Watford has been going about its business with an attacking impetus and moxie abnormal for top-flight newbies.
Far from the Premier League's most explosive side, the Hornets have combined modest means with the application of a traditional 4-4-2 formation, highlighted by a tandem of no-nonsense attackers in Odion Ighalo and Championship veteran Troy Deeney.
Once the staple of Premier League football, the two-striker formation has become a neglected art. Sides like Manchester United and Everton may start two attackers - Anthony Martial and Wayne Rooney, and Romelu Lukaku and Arouna Kone, respectively - but not to great effect. Footballers in the mold of Martial and Kone tend to drift wide and inhabit a winger's role, altering the gaffer's tactics mid-match.
The pairing of Ighalo and Deeney has served two purposes at Vicarage Road; creating more chances than any other top-flight duo, and giving a semblance of consistency to a club that has at times lacked continuity. Madrid-born manager Quique Sanchez Flores became the Hornets' fifth manager in a twelve-month period, with the club on London's periphery looking to avoid the yo-yo fate of their last Premier League appearance in 2006-07.
Considering how they stack up with Leicester City pairing Jamie Vardy and Riyad Mahrez, the attacking exploits of Deeney and the recently-capped Nigerian international Ighalo are staggering.
Watford are one of the few sides to play two up front in the Premier League, & it has worked very well for them #MNF pic.twitter.com/1nd8u9qF8b
— Sky Sports MNF (@SkySportsMNF) December 7, 2015
Full credit to Flores for adapting to top-flight football with haste, as initial plans focused on Deeney up top alone, before the former Atletico Madrid boss inserted Ighalo to great effect.
Ighalo has nine league goals through 15 matches and Deeney has been red-hot.
4 - Troy Deeney is the first Watford player to score in four successive Premier League games. Buzzing.
— OptaJoe (@OptaJoe) December 5, 2015
A congested list of holiday fixtures against the likes of Liverpool, Chelsea, Tottenham, and Manchester City will go a long way toward determining where Watford sits at season's end.
As difficult as it is to fathom the Hornets securing a continental spot, it's hard to anticipate them flirting with relegation if they continue with the attacking panache they've employed through this campaign's first 15 matches.