Watford Opinion: Should Watford go all out to sign Yann M’Vila?

According to a report from the Daily Mirror, Chelsea were interested in a January deadline day swoop for Watford midfielder Abdoulaye Doucoure. However, no deal materialised as Watford managed to keep hold of their star player.

Abdoulaye Doucoure, 26, has enjoyed yet another good season in the Premier League, contributing with three goals and five assists for Watford. While the Hornets kept hold of the Frenchman in January, Doucoure’s desire to play for a big club should worry manager Javi Gracia ahead of the 2019/20 campaign.

Gracia has built a really quality Watford team this campaign and Doucoure has been a crucial cog of it. And as the Hornets strive hard to achieve a place in Europe next season, losing Doucoure in summer would be a big blow, even though the midfielder is tied down at the club until 2023.

Hence, it’s important for Gracia to start plotting potential replacements for the 26-year-old Frenchman from now onwards. One of the players that could interest Watford is Saint-Etienne’s Yann M’Vila.

Yann M’Vila, 28, is a familiar face to plenty of fans in England from his time at Sunderland. He managed 37 appearances for Sunderland in the 2015-16 season on loan from Rubin Kazan, helping the club avoid relegation from the top-flight.

Now plying his trade in France with Saint-Etienne, the 28-year-old has been a regular fixture this season under Jean-Louis Gasset. M’Vila has been excellent throughout the season and Watford must certainly take a punt on him in summer.

In M’Vila, Watford would get a physical, strong and a tough-tackling defensive midfielder who excels in breaking opposition’s play. He is an excellent passer of the ball and is instrumental in building-up attacks from a deeper position.

The former French international boasts of an incredible engine and works tirelessly off the ball. He is equally adept at winning back possession with crucial tackles and interceptions, whilst also providing a lot with his creativity in the middle of the park.

An excellent reader of the game, the former Rubin Kazan man is something of an all-action midfielder, an archetype of a player who can turn defense into offense in a blink of an eye. M’Vila uses his mobility and vision to create openings for his teammates, whilst his ability to make runs into the box makes him such a threat.

Conclusion

M’Vila is currently operating at the peak of his powers and has already shown earlier his quality in the Premier League.

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The role of Doucoure in a midfield-pivot is perhaps the most vital in Javi Gracia’s 4-4-2 system and someone like M’Vila has the physical and technical attributes to take over the reins if the former leaves the club.

Hence, Gracia should go all out to sign M’Vila.