Football League World
·29 October 2024
Football League World
·29 October 2024
The Hornets could face a fight to keep one of their key men in January
Watford may already be having to think about retaining their key players come the January transfer window.
Having taken 19 points from their 12 league games so far, the Hornets currently sit seventh in the Championship table.
As a result, they may feel they have laid the foundations to push on and claim a play-off spot this season, which could give them a shot at promotion back to the Premier League.
However, Watford will no doubt feel they will need to keep hold of their key players once the market reopens at the turn of the year, to give them the best chance of doing that.
Now though, it appears one player they may face a battle to keep come the January window, is Giorgi Chakvetadze.
Having joined the Hornets on loan from Gent back in the summer of 2023, the attacker then made his move to Vicarage Road permanent in February this year.
Throughout his time with the club, Chakvetadze has become an important player, making 50 appearances in all competitions, scoring two goals and providing six assists.
He also impressed at Euro 2024 in the summer, helping Georgia reach the Round of 16 in their first ever appearance at a major international tournament.
That is now starting to generate interest from elsewhere in the Watford man, with reports claiming that Wolves are keen on a January move for the 25-year-old.
It has been a tough start to the season for Gary O'Neill's side, who sit second from bottom of the Premier League table, with just two points from nine games.
But despite that, there is an argument that there is still reason for Watford to be concerned about Wolves' interest in Chakvetadze, when considering the Midlands' side start to their season.
Given it has been a tough start to the season for the Molineux club, that may have offered some hope to those at Vicarage Road when it comes to these links.
If they continue to struggle, then Chakvetadze may be wary about a move there, given it may only guarantee him a few months in the Premier League.
That would particularly be the case if Watford continue their own promising start, and can give him the chance to earn promotion while playing at Vicarage Road.
However, despite that tough start, Wolves themselves have reason to be optimistic that they can turn things around in the coming months.
So far, O'Neill's men have had what is surely one of the toughest starts in the Premier League during the current campaign.
In their nine league games so far, Wolves have played every club currently occupying a top seven spot in the Premier League.
Indeed, the current lowest ranked club they have played so far is Newcastle United, who are twelfth as things stand.
It is worth noting that against the current top two - Manchester City and Liverpool - they lost by just a single goal, with that defeat to City coming extremely late, and somewhat controversially.
Meanwhile, their recovery from 2-0 down with less than five minutes of normal time remaining at Brighton on Saturday, also highlighted the resilience and determination within this team.
As a result, with what should be some more winnable games on the horizon, Wolves have arguably shown enough against stronger opposition, to suggest they can start to pick up positive results.
That in turn, could see them start to move back up the table again, making them a more appealing destination for potential January transfer targets such as Chakvetadze.
With that in mind, it seems that even when it comes to Wolves' poor start to the season, there is reason for Watford to be worried about these latest transfer links.