Watford continued to strengthen ahead of their return to the top flight, with the capture of former Napoli and West Ham United midfielder Valon Behrami on a three-year deal.
In conversation with the club’s official website, Behrami revealed that he’s been tracking the Hornets’ progress since his former boss Gianfranco Zola spent a year in charge at Vicarage Road:
“This is a great club and I know the way the owners work. They’ve made some great signings. I’ve followed Watford since Gianfranco Zola was the manager. I played for him at West Ham and since then I was always looking out for Watford. Finally the time has arrived when Watford are back in the Premier League and it was a good solution for me, so I’m very happy now. It’s very attractive; when Mr Pozzo called me I was excited. It’s a new adventure for me, a new challenge, and I’m really hungry for this opportunity.”
The History
Born in Yugoslavia, Behrami moved to Switzerland as a child, beginning his footballing education at local clubs FC Stabio and FC Chiasso. In 2000, he was snapped up by top-tier Swiss outfit Lugano, where he would train for two years before earning a move to Genoa. After recording zero attacking returns across 24 outings in his debut season with the Red-blues, Behrami was loaned out to fellow Serie B oufit Verona for the 2004/05 season. He netted three goals in 33 appearances for the Yellow-blues, prompting Lazio to bring him to Serie A.
In three years at the Stadio Olimpico, Behrami notched four goals and one assist in 64 outings. West Ham United then came calling in the summer of 2008, landing the Switzerland international in a £5 million deal. Behrami filled in at right-back for Lucas Neill at the start of his debut campaign with the Hammers but was quickly shifted to a defensive midfield berth. He missed 13 matches through injury in the 2008/09 season, chalking up one goal and two assists in 24 appearances. Over the next term and a half, Behrami mustered just 29 starts, bagging one goal and five assists along the way. Having failed to make the squad for 10 of West Ham’s previous 13 league clashes prior to his move, Behrami signed for Fiorentina in the dying embers of the 2011 January transfer window.
Following a one-season stint with Viola (zero goals and one assist in 31 outings), Behrami teamed up with Napoli for two years (zero attacking returns in 54 appearances). Most recently, he endured an injury-hit season with Hamburg, making just 22 starts as the Bundesliga outfit narrowly escape relegation by a single point.
On the international scene, he has turned out for Switzerland in 59 occasions and found the net twice, with his last strike coming in a friendly against Slovenia back in 2008.
The Prospects
Given his lack of attacking returns, it’s fair to say that Behrami will find it difficult to convince Fantasy managers he’s worthy of a place in our 15-man squads. Nonetheless, at a price of just 4.5 in the Fantasy Premier League (FPL) game, he may appeal to those looking for a cut-price midfielder with a security of starts that can sit on our benches and be called upon in emergencies.
Whilst his similarly-priced team-mate Ikechi Anya recorded seven assists in 27 starts last term, for example, the influx of new signings suggests the Scotland international may struggle to nail down a starting berth under new manager, Quique Sanchez Flores.
Elsewhere in the centre of the park, Almen Abdi (5.0) will be hoping to remain in Flores’ plans. Aside from being Watford’s premier free-kick taker, the Switzerland international enjoys a fair share of their corners and tallied nine goals last term – only Troy Deeney (122) and Odion Ighalo (71) mustered more attempts at goal. The ex-Udinese midfielder was arguably unlucky not to amass more than two assists, having executed 33 key passes across 32 matches, though given that new recruit José Manuel Jurado has previously played under Flores, the competition in the final third is clearly heating up.
Behrami, on the other hand, at least looks a secure option in the double-pivot, considering that Flores has rolled out a 4-2-3-1 in all but one of his side’s friendlies so far. An average of 4.2 tackles per appearance in the Bundesliga last season highlights his defensive-minded duties and suggests that Behrami’s ball-winning ability will be vital as Watford look to avoid the drop. In turn, that could boost his side’s defensive prospects, given that they managed just 15 clean sheets in the Championship in 2014/15.
Certainly, with Everton, West Brom, Southampton and City in the opening four weeks, Watford have been handed a taxing start to the season, though for those eyeing up their defensive options, it’s worth bearing in mind that they rotate with Bournemouth over the course of the season. Behrami’s main appeal lies in that of a cut-price “enabler”, then, though the opening few weeks should highlight more viable attacking options in the budget midfield bracket.
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