In theory, Manchester United manager Jose Mourinho couldn't have asked for a kinder fixture to follow the international break as the Red Devils travel to Vicarage Road to take on a Watford side that they have beaten 14 times in the past 15 meetings.
However, this current Watford outfit are buzzing. The Hornets have won all four of their Premier League games this season and their sole victory over United since 1986 came at this ground almost two years to the day.
It was on 18th September 2016 that Watford romped to a 3-1 defeat over United as a late penalty from Troy Deeney put the icing on the cake for the home side and consigned United to a third defeat in eight days in all competitions, following a derby loss to Manchester City and a surprise Europa League reversal at the hands of Feyenoord. It was the first time that Mourinho had lost three games in a row since his time with Porto in 2002.
Mourinho is facing a similarly sticky period ahead of Saturday evening's clash as his United side have won just two of their four games and he will be wary of the threat posed by the bustling Watford forward Deeney, who has scored twice already this season. In a remarkable statistical quirk, the 30-year-old has scored a penalty in each of Watford's past three home games against United.
Troy Deeney is 9/1 to be first goalscorer with bookmakers as he bids to score in a fourth successive home clash against Manchester United."
Despite Deeney's contributions in recent years, including the icing topper two years ago, Mourinho has won six of his seven matches against Watford as a manager and he will be confident that his team can maintain their hoodoo over the Hornets, despite their difficult start to the season.
The feeling of unrest surrounding the Manchester club has been compounded by the rumours this week that Mourinho has 'lost patience' with Anthony Martial and is willing to sell the French star. The 22-year-old has struggled for form since Alexis Sanchez signed in January and it will be intriguing to see if he is given the chance to impress at Vicarage Road.
The door may be open for Martial as Marcus Rashford is suspended following his sending off against Burnley before the international break and this is a fixture that Martial tends to enjoy. Martial has scored in each of his last two appearances against Watford and it would be an ironic twist if the apparently unwanted forward were to score the goal that helped a beleaguered manager who has shown so little faith in the Frenchman in recent times.
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