Watford midfielder Abdoulaye Doucoure has attracted attention from Ligue 1 giants Paris Saint-Germain, a report by Goal has claimed.
The report further states that the French outfit are willing to spend £50m to secure his services after being impressed by his fine run of form in the Premier League this season for the Hornets.
Doucoure is a key player for Watford and losing him this month would be a big blow for them.
Javi Gracia has relied heavily on the duo of Doucoure and Etienne Capoue and therefore, he would need a perfect replacement for the former in case he leaves Vicarage Road.
Here are three players Gracia and Watford should target if Doucoure leaves.
#1 Adrien Tameze
Nice’s hard-working and energetic central midfielder Adrien Tameze would be an astute replacement for Doucoure.
Armed with good physicality, pace and tenacity, Tameze is a versatile player as he can operate as a box-to-box or holding midfielder, and even as a right-back if needed.
Tameze possesses excellent positional awareness and has the ability to break up opposition play with his tackles and interceptions.
In 18 Ligue 1 appearances so far this season, the 24-year-old has made 2.3 tackles, 1.6 interceptions and 1.6 clearances per game on an average.
#2 Kerem Demirbay
A technically gifted player with the know-how of plying his trade as a box-to-box midfielder, Hoffenheim’s Kerem Demirbay would be a smashing signing for Gracia’s side.
The German has the ability to burst forward with the ball and can knit the side together with his precise passes on the pitch.
The 25-year-old can press opposition players off the ball as well and is one of the key players under Julian Nagelsmann’s philosophy of high-press football.
Demirbay also tends to drift wide at times to cross the ball into the box for the strikers to capitalise on. He has scored 2 goals and has registered 2 assists in 11 German Bundesliga appearances, apart from making 2.5 tackles per game on an average.
#3 Mahmoud Dahoud
Mahmoud Dahoud, despite his credentials, hasn’t been handed enough opportunities at Borussia Dortmund.
The 23-year-old has featured in merely 7 Bundesliga games and players of his age generally crave to be on the pitch week in and week out.
If Watford manage to make Dahoud sign on the dotted line, it would be one hell of a statement.
The German is an intelligent player and a genuine pass master. Besides, he has earned positive reviews for his maturity, energy and ability to dictate the pace of the game.
Statistics Credits: Whoscored
