Nathan Aké has insisted Watford will go into their match at Stamford Bridge on Boxing Day as underdogs even though they have won their past four matches and sit 10 points and eight places above Chelsea, his parent club.
The Dutch defender, who is enjoying an outstanding season on loan at Watford, cautioned his team-mates after Sunday’s 3-0 victory over Liverpool. “We’ve got a lot of confidence now but we can’t get too much confidence and play easy, like we’re a bigger team,” Aké said. “I think Chelsea are still Chelsea, they’re a top team. We’re still on the bottom, and need to play like that as well.”
The deal for Aké’s season-long move to Watford includes a clause which would allow him to be recalled in January, but despite his good form and Chelsea’s struggles the 20-year-old is not expecting to be beckoned back to west London. He was peripheral last season, playing 17 minutes in the Premier League – at West Bromwich Albion in the penultimate game of the season, with the title already won and his team already 3-0 down – with nine further matches spent on the bench. Nevertheless he felt he had “a good relationship” with José Mourinho, and does not believe that his chances of making an impact have improved now there is a fellow Dutchman in the dugout in Guus Hiddink.
“I don’t think that because the manager changes, suddenly I have a chance to play,” he said. “I think it’s just a matter of yourself, how you’re playing, how you develop, and if you’re able to come back next season and perform. I just try to play my game and develop myself, I think that’s the most important thing. I’m playing well now but you need to do the whole season, not just a couple of games. I need to develop and then we’ll see next year.”
Given that Aké started nine of Watford’s past 10 matches – coming on at half-time in the other and massively improving the team – he said he would not necessarily relish a call from Stamford Bridge in January: “It’s difficult to say. Of course, I’m happy here because I play every time, and I think that’s going to be the case if I stay here. I think I’ll still be here in February.”
| Pos | Team | P | GD | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3 | Man City | 16 | 15 | 32 |
| 4 | Tottenham Hotspur | 17 | 14 | 29 |
| 5 | Man Utd | 17 | 8 | 29 |
| 6 | Crystal Palace | 17 | 7 | 29 |
| 7 | Watford | 17 | 5 | 28 |
| 8 | West Ham | 17 | 4 | 25 |
Aké is unable to play against Chelsea under the terms of his loan agreement but is unlikely to have to wait long to make his comeback, with Tottenham visiting Vicarage Road on 28 December. “Of course, you want to keep playing but the next game is just two days after, so it’s not a long wait,” he said. “I think it’s really good for me to play, it really helps me.”
The Dutchman had been seen as a defensive midfielder but has spent this season playing at left-back – though more surprising than his position in the team is Watford’s in the table, the pre-season relegation favourites now just a point away from the top four. “This season has been crazy,” he said. “Our position is deserved because we’re playing well, we’ve worked really hard to be here and we just have to keep going.”
