Hornets boss wants to 'inflict more pain' on Luton at Kenilworth Road

Watford boss Tom Cleverley is out to ‘inflict more pain’ on Luton when the two teams meet for their eagerly anticipated derby clash at Kenilworth Road tomorrow afternoon.

The Hornets will go into the contest having made by far the better start to the Championship campaign, taking 16 points from their opening nine games to sit in the final play-off spot, eight more than the Hatters who are currently languishing down in 21st position. Cleverley, who came through the ranks at Manchester United, a Premier League winner earlier in his career, has had a long association with the Hertfordshire club, joining from Everton in 2017, going on to play almost 150 times, including when current Town chief Rob Edwards was having his brief 11-game spell as manager at Vicarage Road.

It’s clear the ex-England international still has plenty of respect for his opposite number, even though he wants to pile the pressure on to his former manager, who has come in for criticism over the manner of Luton’s start to life in the second tier following their relegation from Premier League, having just won just once on home soil so, beaten five times already. He told BBC Three Counties Radio: “Form goes out the window in derby games, so it will be a unique game and it will be a game that we won't focus on anyone’s current form.

"Yes I'd prefer my team to be going into the game with confidence than lacking confidence, but it's not been part of the preparation to try and focus on that. Rob's someone I have a lot of respect for and sorry that I can't build up a little bit of a showdown in that respect. Yes I want to inflict more pain on them on Saturday afternoon but he's someone that I really respect.”

Although Cleverley is still relatively inexperienced as a manager, taking over at Watford as interim head coach in March 2024, then given the permanent role a month later, he does have previous knowledge of just what the derby means to both sets of supporters. The midfielder played in both matches during the 2020-21 season, Watford winning 1-0 at Vicarage Road, Luton taking the spoils in the return game, thanks to James Collins’ penalty, although both encounters were played behind closed doors due to Covid regulations.

With Town having not lost a derby clash in Bedfordshire since 2006, Gabe Osho and Allan Campbell sealing a raucous 2-0 triumph back in April 2023, asked if his players will be aware just how big a contest this is, he said: “They know, after my team meeting, they know. I fully understand that this one means more. It means more to us, more to them, more to our supporters. It's a fixture that's not been played so much over the last couple of decades, and it's certainly been a long time since a Watford team have won there.

"So what bigger motivation for me and my group of players to really create a little bit of history, recent history anyway, and go and win at Kenilworth Road. For me, I want us to take that step that we believe we're a big player in this division. We keep taking those steps, and then it’s followed by an inconsistent performance, so it's time now to take that extra step forward, and with it being the derby that makes it mean even more.

"I don't expect anyone to be hiding. We all know what's coming. You have to battle in this division, on a derby day more than ever. You have to battle, and you have to earn the right to show your qualities. This one is a little bit different, it’s going to be hostile, it's going to be aggressive. I feel we have the players, especially after the wake-up call at Deepdale, to thrive in that environment.”

Watford expect goalkeeper Daniel Bachmann to be in contention after recovering from an injury picked up during the trip to Norwich City last month, while Congolese midfielder Edo Kayembe and Chilean defender Francisco Sierralta are both doubts, but Georgian winger Giorgi Chakvetadze is expected to be fit, with Italian centre back Angelo Ogbonna responding well to treatment too.