The last decade has been a rollercoaster of emotions for Watford FC fans. The Hornets have seen multiple promotions and relegations and prolonged stays in both the Championship and the promised land that is the Premier League.
Along the way, there have been many signings for the Hornets. Some of them have performed brilliantly and elevated their career. Others have undoubtedly been disasters. This article will go into the five best success stories of the previous ten years and how their involvement in this mad football club influenced their career.
Watford’s Top Signings
5 – Emmanuel Dennis 2021/22
The most recent of the best of the signings is Emmanuel Dennis. Famed for his brace against Real Madrid at the Bernabéu, many Hornets fans were excited about what he could deliver. He arrived from Club Brugge for a fee of around £3 million.
It is safe to say that he was great value for money as he netted 10 Premier League goals and provided six assists. While this was not enough to keep the Hornets up, this attracted the interest of Premier League newcomers Nottingham Forest who splashed £20 million on the Nigerian international.
However, likely due to their volume of summer signings, Dennis rarely featured and unfortunately, he has not been a success story after departing Vicarage Road. He made a short return in January of the 2023/24 season, but this campaign was less than impressive as he scored just four goals in 18 matches and seemingly failed to attract Gino Pozzo into making the return permanent.
4 – João Pedro 2019/20
João Pedro was signed by Watford for around £2 million from the Brazilian side Fluminense but he was sadly unable to display his talents to the Vicarage Road faithfuls until their 2019/20 season in which Watford was relegated. Pedro chose the perfect time to score his first goal for Watford as he netted the winner against Luton Town in the M1 derby.
Pedro would continue to display his dazzling play style up until the 2023/24 season when he joined Premier League side Brighton for around £30 million. In his first season for Brighton, he lit up the Europa League, becoming the joint third top goal scorer aged just 22 and no doubt has an exceptional career ahead of him. His contributions to Watford are largely why they were promoted back to the Premier League in their 2020/21 season.
3 – Gerard Deulofeu 2017/18
Third on this list is Deulofeu. While it is arguable that Pedro was a better player than Deulofeu, there is one game that sets Gerard apart and earns him a third place spot and that is his iconic performance in the FA Cup semi-final against Wolves. With Watford 2-0 down, Deulofeu scored a ridiculous flicked shot in the 79th minute to pull one back and, following a 94th-minute equaliser from Deeney, scored in the 104th minute to put Watford in the FA Cup final for the second time in their history.
This historic performance, along with other performances are what have earned Deulofeu a third place on this list and is why he wrote himself into Watford folklore.
2 – Étienne Capoue 2015/16
Capoue joined Watford from Tottenham Hotspur for £9 million and is possibly the closest thing to a world-class midfielder that Watford has ever had. Despite being a defensive midfielder, Capoue quickly became known at Vicarage Road for his incredible ability to score long shots, his consistency and his ability to switch the play with a pass out wide became one of his signature plays.
Capoue was with Watford from their first season in the Premier League until the January window following Watford’s relegation. During his time at Watford, Capoue helped create some magical moments for Hornets fans including being part of their 2018/19 run to the FA Cup final but was also there for very low moments such as the actual FA Cup final or when Watford’s Premier League dream came to an end.
Since leaving Watford, Hornets fans watched on with a bittersweet feeling as their former midfielder went on to win the Europa League with Villarreal. Capoue made a total of 181 appearances for Watford and their fans would be hard-pushed to point out a single game in which he did not perform.
1 – Odion Ighalo 2014/15
Finally, in first place is Ighalo. Ighalo arrived from Udinese following three loan spells at Granada when they were still owned by Gino Pozzo. Expectations were generally low for Ighalo who had only scored a combined 12 league goals in his three loans with Granada.
However, Ighalo hit the ground running and scored 20 goals for Watford and built an iconic strike partnership with Watford legend Troy Deeney. Ighalo’s contributions helped see Watford promoted to the Premier League in the 2014/15 season. The following season, his strike duo with Deeney continued to thrive as Watford comfortably finished 13th and Ighalo scored 15 Premier League goals.
Ighalo would go on to sign for Changchun Yatai in China for £20 million which provided Watford with a huge profit and at the time, their most lucrative ever player sale. Ighalo would later go on to play for Manchester United. While he was not with the Hornets for very long, the partnership Ighalo formed with Deeney is not likely to be forgotten by Watford fans anytime soon and his brilliant returns earn him the top spot for the best Watford FC signings in the last ten years.