Troy Deeney, who has been sharing tips with Watford’s Under-23 strikers, finally trained with the first team for the first time in over two months on Tuesday. Deeney took another step forward as he edges closer to making his eagerly-anticipated comeback from a right knee injury.
The Hornets frontman was forced to have surgery in August on the issue which apparently first flared up during pre-season, with Watford confirming he has had bone fragments and some cartilage trimmed from the joint.
Under the watchful eye of Watford boss Quique Sanchez Flores, the club captain joined in with Tuesday’s first-team activities, completing three quarters of the session in what was a pre-planned move by the club’s medical staff.
If he suffers no reaction and can train for the rest of the week there is no reason why Flores won’t name him in his matchday squad for the weekend’s trip to Carrow Road to face fellow strugglers Norwich City.
Deeney came through a session with the club’s Under-23s on Sunday morning unscathed and some of the young strikers in that squad were delighted to have the 31-year-old join in.
“He’s a great player, a great character and it was a great experience,” said midfielder Callum Whelan, who arrived from Manchester United this summer. “You just raise your standards as you don’t want to leave a pass for him short. He speaks so much, talks you through it and that’s the biggest thing you take away from training with him.”
Ex-Leeds striker Sam Dalby was delighted to learn from the veteran of 343 league games for the club over two of the last three days and learned a bit about how Deeney has anaged to score 114 goals in that time.
He said: “It’s his attention to detail and you listen to every little nugget he gives you. He gave me a tip about feeling the defender in your back and letting him hit you on Sunday and that was great. He’s so helpful and can only help me improve as a player.”
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