Watford have Chelsea loanee Caleb Wiley ‘fit and available’ after a shoulder injury, Tom Cleverley has confirmed.
Watford will be out to maintain their hopes of a late play-off tilt this weekend as they prepare for the visit of Millwall.
Form may have been hard to come by for the Hornets in recent months but the inconsistencies of those around them means there’s still a chance of sneaking into the top six before the season’s end. They sit in 10th, three points off the play-offs.
Watford FC boss Tom Cleverley
Image courtesy of: PAUL CHILDS/REUTERS.
A result here will be important though, and head coach Tom Cleverley has shared the latest on the injury front going into this weekend’s clash.
In positive news, the Watford boss confirmed that unseen winter loan signing Caleb Wiley is fit and available. The left-back has been recovering from a shoulder injury and while he has learning to do, Cleverley backs him to be an asset in the closing stages of the season.
“Caleb will be learning what I want from the full-backs all the time,” the Hornets boss said, as quoted by their media team.
“He looks a very promising player. He needs to learn some of the arts you will need in the Championship, and he will. He is a bright lad, and willing to learn.
“At the moment he is still learning, but he is someone who looks a useful player. He is now fit and available.”
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Elsewhere on the injury front, Watford midfielder Pierre Dwomoh is expected to be back in contention after the international break. Following shortly after will be goalkeeper Daniel Bachmann and forward Kwadwo Baah.
An unseen prospect
Wiley joined Watford in January as a vey highly-rated talent. He’s on the books at Chelsea after a move from MLS side Atlanta United in 2024, making his breakthrough Stateside.
A loan to RC Strasbourg was disrupted by injury, suffering the shoulder dislocation that has kept him out for the Hornets.
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Now fit though, the 20-year-old will be out to show why he’s held in such high regard both back in America and at parent club Chelsea. He’s an athletic presence on the left-hand side but 13 goal contributions with Atlanta shows the attacking prowess he boasts too.
Watford stadium Vicarage Road
Image courtesy of: PAUL CHILDS/REUTERS.
The run to the break
Watford will be eager to enter the international break in a strong position. They will welcome Dwomoh, Bachmann and Baah back with open arms, but the trio may need to be eased back into action to avoid re-injury or fresh setbacks.
This weekend’s game against Millwall is the first of three in the space of eight days for Cleverley and co.
They host Swansea City in another home game next Wednesday before making a quick turnaround to face Oxford United at the Kassam Stadium. Strong results in these games could have the Hornets in a fine position heading into the run-in after the international fixtures.
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