Arsenal boss Arsene Wenger wary of Watford's front men
Arsene Wenger may have a full quota of fit centre-backs to chose from against Watford on Sunday afternoon - but the Arsenal boss still fears the threat of Troy Deeney and Odion Ighalo.
The Hornets make the short trip to the Emirates Stadium for their FA Cup sixth-round tie - with a place at a Wembley semi-final the prize for the victor.
Arsenal, in search of their third FA Cup success in as many years, came through a replay at Hull in midweek to set up a clash with Barclays Premier League rivals Watford.
Wenger lost both of his centre-backs on Tuesday as Gabriel and Per Mertesacker were forced off with injuries.
But he is hopeful both will be available for Sunday, while fellow defender Laurent Koscielny could also be fit for a recall having recovered from a calf injury.
Even though Wenger could have the trio at his disposal, with a Champions League tie in Barcelona and a tough Premier League trip to Everton to come inside a week, he may have to look carefully at who is given the nod against Quique Sanchez Flores' side.
And the Frenchman is wary of the threat that Watford's two strikers can possess - with the visitors looking to spring a surprise by knocking out the record 12-time winners of the trophy on Sunday.
"They have done extremely well," Wenger said of Watford's first season back in the top-flight.
"It looks like the Championship teams that come up now deal very well with the Premier League regime.
"You have Watford who are doing extremely well. They are very prepared and very efficient. They have two strikers who are very efficient with Ighalo and Deeney and we worked very hard to control the game (last time we played them).
"They give us a tough time. When we played against Watford in the Premier League, Deeney had not scored I think for a long time. After us he started to score but during the game I was impressed by him. He's a good player.
"They have a very good understanding between the strikers and the quality between our two centre backs will be vital on Sunday."
Meanwhile, Deeney says his son will be supporting the opposition when Watford face the Gunners.
Six-year-old Myles is a big Arsenal fan and the Hornets captain is in no doubt who he will be cheering for on Sunday.
"He is buzzing. He gets to go to Arsenal," Deeney said. "It is the first time I get to take him to the Emirates.
"He is a six-year-old boy, it doesn't matter if daddy is playing - he wants Arsenal to win because that is his team.
"He will be sat in the Watford end and I will be making sure he doesn't cheer if Arsenal score - there will be no pocket money this weekend!"
Watford lost 3-0 to Arsenal at Vicarage Road when the teams met in the Barclays Premier League in October, and Deeney believes his team have learned from the mistakes made that day as they prepare for their trip to north London.
Deeney said: "That game is the only spell this season where we were too gung-ho.
"They scored and, instead of holding out for what we had for the next 10 minutes and steadying the ship, we just went gung-ho.
"You cannot do that against Arsenal and they just picked us apart and before you knew it, it was 3-0 and the game was over.
"We know we have to be cautious and very smart in our play but also if we go a goal down it is not the end of the world.
"It is not just a massive game for the players - it is a massive occasion for the town and the fans.
"We have sold 8,000 already so that shows how much everyone is looking forward to it."
Flores has late decisions to make on Craig Cathcart and Jose Manuel Jurado.
The pair have been suffering from calf injuries and are being monitored but Flores confirmed Costel Pantilimon will continue in goal for the FA Cup after playing well against Nottingham Forest and Leeds in the earlier rounds.
The Hornets boss ruled out Miguel Britos (hamstring) for the tie and Joel Ekstrand (also hamstring) remains on the sidelines.
Source: PAR
