# 2024–25 Watford F.C. season

The 2024–25 season is the 126th season in the history of Watford and their third consecutive season in the Championship. The club are participating in the Championship, the FA Cup, and the EFL Cup.

## Current squad

    As of 3 February 2025
| No. | Name | Position | Date of birth (Age) | Signed from | Since | Fee | Ends | Apps | Goals |
| Goalkeepers |||||||||||
| 1 | Daniel Bachmann | GK | 9 July 1994 (age 30) | Stoke City | 2017 | Free Transfer | 2028 | 120 | 0 |
| 23 | Jonathan Bond | GK | 19 May 1993 (age 31) | Free Agent | 2024 | Free Transfer | 2025 | 35 | 0 |
| Defenders |||||||||||
| 2 | Jeremy Ngakia | RB | 7 September 2000 (age 23) | West Ham United | 2020 | Free Transfer | 2027 | 76 | 0 |
| 3 | Francisco Sierralta | CB | 6 May 1997 (age 27) | Udinese | 2020 | Undisclosed | 2027 | 94 | 2 |
| 5 | Ryan Porteous | CB | 25 March 1999 (age 25) | Hibernian | 2023 | £500,000 | 2027 | 60 | 5 |
| 6 | Mattie Pollock | CB | 28 September 2001 (age 22) | Grimsby Town | 2021 | £300,000 | 2026 | 29 | 1 |
| 13 | Kayky Almeida | CB | 1 May 2005 (age 19) | Fluminese | 2024 | Undisclosed | 2029 | 0 | 0 |
| 15 | Antonio Tikvić | CB | 21 April 2004 (age 20) | Udinese | 2024 | Loan | 2025 | 2 | 0 |
| 21 | Angelo Ogbonna | CB | 23 May 1988 (age 36) | West Ham United | 2024 | Free | 2025 | 0 | 0 |
| 22 | James Morris | LB | 23 November 2001 (age 22) | Southampton | 2021 | Free Transfer | 2026 | 36 | 0 |
| 25 | James Abankwah | CB | 16 January 2004 (age 21) | Udinese | 2024 | Loan | 2025 | 0 | 0 |
| 36 | Festy Ebosele | RB | 2 August 2002 (age 22) | Udinese | 2024 | Loan | 2025 | 0 | 0 |
| 37 | Yasser Larouci | LB | 1 January 2001 (age 23) | Troyes | 2024 | Loan | 2025 | 4 | 0 |
| 45 | Ryan Andrews | RB | 26 August 2004 (age 20) | Academy | 2012 | — | 2028 | 57 | 4 |
| — | Kévin Keben | CB | 26 January 2004 (age 20) | Toulouse | 2024 | Undisclosed | 2028 | 0 | 0 |
| | Caleb Wiley | LB | 22 February 2004 (age 23) | Chelsea | 2025 | Loan | 2025 | 0 | 0 |
| Midfielders |||||||||||
| 8 | Giorgi Chakvetadze | AM | 29 August 1999 (age 24) | Gent | 2024 | Undisclosed | 2027 | 41 | 2 |
| 10 | Imran Louza | CM | 1 May 1999 (age 25) | Nantes | 2021 | £10,000,000 | 2028 | 63 | 6 |
| 11 | Rocco Vata | AM | 18 April 2005 (age 19) | Celtic | 2024 | Compensation | 2028 | 2 | 0 |
| 14 | Pierre Dwomoh | CM | 21 June 2004 (age 20) | Royal Antwerp | 2024 | Undisclosed | 2028 | 0 | 0 |
| 17 | Moussa Sissoko | CM | 16 August 1989 (age 35) | Nantes | 2024 | Free Transfer | 2026 | 42 | 3 |
| 24 | Tom Dele-Bashiru | CM | 17 September 1999 (age 24) | Manchester City | 2019 | Free Transfer | 2026 | 55 | 4 |
| 39 | Edo Kayembe | CM | 3 June 1998 (age 26) | KAS Eupen | 2022 | £4,700,000 | 2026 | 76 | 8 |
| Forwards |||||||||||
| 7 | Tom Ince | RW | 30 January 1992 (age 32) | Reading | 2023 | £50,000 | 2026 | 33 | 5 |
| 12 | Ken Sema | LW | 30 September 1993 (age 30) | Östersunds | 2018 | Undisclosed | 2025 | 164 | 12 |
| 18 | Daniel Jebbison | ST | 13 August 2003 (age 21) | AFC Bournemouth | 2024 | Loan | 2025 | 1 | 0 |
| 19 | Vakoun Bayo | ST | 10 January 1997 (age 27) | Udinese | 2024 | Loan | 2025 | 71 | 12 |
| 20 | Mamadou Doumbia | ST | 18 February 2006 (age 18) | Black Stars | 2024 | Undisclosed | 2030 | 2 | 0 |
| 34 | Kwadwo Baah | LW | 27 January 2003 (age 21) | Rochdale | 2021 | Free Transfer | 2026 | 5 | 1 |
| Out on loan |||||||||||
| 9 | Mileta Rajović | ST | 17 July 1999 (age 25) | Kalmar FF | 2023 | £1,000,000 | 2028 | 48 | 14 |
| — | Jack Grieves | ST | 5 December 2004 (age 19) | Academy | 2020 | — | 2026 | 5 | 0 |
| — | Jorge Hurtado | ST | 6 September 2003 (age 20) | Real Cartagena | 2023 | Undisclosed | 2029 | 1 | 0 |
| — | João Ferreira | RB | 22 March 2001 (age 23) | Benfica | 2023 | £2,500,000 | 2027 | 5 | 1 |
* ↑ Bond re-signed for Watford playing 33 games between 2012-2015.
* ↑ Sissoko re-signed for Watford playing 38 games and scoring 2 goals between 2021-2022.
* ↑ Bayo was loaned back to Watford after playing 70 games and scoring 12 goals between 2022-2024.

## Transfers
### In

| Date | Position | Player | From | Fee |
| 1 July 2024 | CF | Mamadou Doumbia | Black Stars | Undisclosed |
| 3 July 2024 | GK | Jonathan Bond | Free agent | — |
| 5 July 2024 | AM | Rocco Vata | Celtic | Compensation |
| 10 July 2024 | CM | Moussa Sissoko | Nantes | Free |
| 8 August 2024 | CB | Kayky Almeida | Fluminese | Undisclosed |
| 26 August 2024 | CM | Pierre Dwomoh | Royal Antwerp | Undisclosed |
| 27 August 2024 | CB | Angelo Ogbonna | West Ham United | Free |
| 29 August 2024 | CB | Kévin Keben | Toulouse | Undisclosed |
| 30 August 2024 | CB | Antonio Tikvić | Udinese | Undisclosed |
| 27 September 2024 | LB | Ian Kamga | Stoke City | Free |
| 1 January 2025 | LW | Nickson Okosun | Bohemians | Undisclosed |
| 31 January 2025 | GK | Egil Selvik | Udinese | Undisclosed |
| 3 February 2025 | CB | Travis Akomeah | Chelsea | Undisclosed |
* ↑ Transfer was announced on 19 February, but joined the club on 1 July.
* ↑ On 23 January, Watford announced that Tikvić's season-long loan had been converted into a permanent transfer in August. As they did not give a specific date for the permanent transfer, 30 August, the final day of the English summer transfer window, is listed.
* 1 2 3 Signed initially for the Under-21s.
* ↑ Transfer was announced on 4 December, but would join the club on 1 January once the transfer window opens.

### Out

| Date | Pos. | Player | To | Fee |
| 28 June 2024 | CM | Ismaël Koné | Marseille | Undisclosed |
| 1 August 2024 | CM | Óber Almanza | Bihor Oradea | Free |
| 23 August 2024 | RW | Yáser Asprilla | Girona | Undisclosed |
| 25 August 2024 | CB | Wesley Hoedt | Al-Shabab | Undisclosed |
| 29 August 2024 | ST | Vakoun Bayo | Udinese | Undisclosed |
| 30 August 2024 | RW | Shaq Forde | Bristol Rovers | Undisclosed |
| 30 August 2024 | RW | Samuel Kalu | Free agent | Mutual consent |

### Loaned in

| Date | Pos. | Player | From | Date until |
| 22 July 2024 | CB | Antonio Tikvić | Udinese | 30 August 2024 |
| 1 August 2024 | LB | Yasser Larouci | Troyes | End of season |
| 29 August 2024 | ST | Vakoun Bayo | Udinese | End of season |
| 30 August 2024 | CF | Daniel Jebbison | AFC Bournemouth | 8 January 2025 |
| 30 August 2024 | RB | Festy Ebosele | Udinese | 30 January 2025 |
| 16 January 2025 | CB | James Abankwah | Udinese | End of season |
| 3 February 2025 | LB | Caleb Wiley | Chelsea | End of season |
* ↑ On 23 January, Watford announced that Tikvić's season-long loan had been converted into a permanent transfer in August. As they did not give a specific date for the permanent transfer, 30 August, the final day of the English summer transfer window, is listed.
* ↑ On 8 January, Jebbison was recalled from his season-long loan.
* ↑ On 30 January, Ebosele was recalled from his season-long loan.

### Loaned out

| Date | Pos. | Player | To | Date until |
| 24 July 2024 | FW | Jack Grieves | Ross County | End of season |
| 29 July 2024 | GK | Myles Roberts | Partick Thistle | End of season |
| 15 August 2024 | CF | Jorge Cabezas Hurtado | PAOK | End of season |
| 2 September 2024 | RB | João Ferreira | Braga | End of season |
| 2 September 2024 | CF | Mileta Rajović | Brøndby IF | End of season |
| 9 September 2024 | CB | Joshua Mullins | Bedford Town | 5 October 2024 |
| 17 October 2024 | CF | Michael Adu-Poku | Solihull Moors | 24 January 2025 |
| 22 October 2024 | GK | Roraigh Browne | Bishop's Stortford | 19 November 2024 |
| 22 October 2024 | CF | Jake Watkiss | Farnborough | 13 December 2024 |
| 25 October 2024 | RB | Albert Eames | Chelmsford City | 22 November 2024 |
| 19 November 2024 | GK | Jonathan Macaulay | Oxford City | 17 December 2024 |
| 20 November 2024 | CB | Joshua Mullins | Bedford Town | 26 April 2025 |
| 22 November 2024 | GK | Roraigh Browne | AFC Dunstable | 11 January 2025 |
| 29 November 2024 | CB | Ali Gould | Kings Langley | 28 December 2024 |
| 4 December 2024 | CB | Aidan Coyne | Maidenhead United | 1 January 2025 |
| 6 December 2024 | FW | Bentley Assiedou | Kings Langley | 2 January 2025 |
| 7 December 2024 | CB | Freddie Buers | Potters Bar Town | 5 January 2025 |
| 7 December 2024 | CB | George Abbott | Hendon | 5 January 2025 |
| 10 December 2024 | CB | James Clarridge | St Albans City | End of season |
| 13 December 2024 | CF | Jake Watkiss | Needham Market | 13 January 2025 |
| 26 December 2024 | CF | Jonathan Lawson | Kings Langley | 21 January 2025 |
| 17 January 2025 | GK | Roraigh Browne | Hendon | 13 February 2025 |
| 18 January 2025 | CB | George Abbott | Potters Bar Town | 15 February 2025 |
| 21 January 2025 | GK | Sam Morris | Hendon | 26 January 2025 |
| 21 January 2025 | LM | Prince Sikiru | Grays Athletic | 18 February 2025 |
| 23 January 2025 | CB | Antonio Tikvić | Grazer | End of season |
| 24 January 2025 | CF | Jonathan Lawson | Hitchin Town | 20 February 2025 |
| 3 February 2025 | CB | Ryan Porteous | Preston North End | End of season |
| 3 February 2025 | GK | Myles Roberts | Bristol Rovers | End of season |
| 14 February 2025 | CB | Ali Gould | Potters Bar Town | 14 March 2025 |
| 28 February 2025 | CF | Jake Watkiss | Needham Market | 26 March 2025 |
| 11 March 2025 | RW | Michael Adu-Poku | Rochdale | 5 May 2025 |
* ↑ On 24 January, Adu-Poku was recalled from his season-long loan.
* ↑ On 13 December, Watkiss was recalled from his two-month loan at Farnborough, and subsequently joined Needham on loan.
* ↑ On 9 January, Clarridge's loan at St Albans, initially set to run until 6 January, was extended until the end of the season.

### Released / Out of Contract

| Date | Pos. | Player | Subsequent club | Join date |
| 30 June 2024 | CF | Ashley Fletcher | Blackpool | 1 July 2024 |
| 30 June 2024 | CM | Yianni Goulandris | Lancaster FC | 1 July 2024 |
| 30 June 2024 | GK | Ben Hamer | Sheffield Wednesday | 1 July 2024 |
| 30 June 2024 | CB | Victor Wachowicz | Missouri State Bears | 1 July 2024 |
| 30 June 2024 | RB | Scott Holding | Macclesfield | 19 July 2024 |
| 30 June 2024 | CF | James Collins | Dulwich Hamlet | 2 August 2024 |
| 30 June 2024 | DM | Jack Taylor | Bishop Stortford | 16 August 2024 |
| 30 June 2024 | RB | Hamzat Balogun | Burnley | 23 September 2024 |
| 30 June 2024 | RW | Dawid Hamiga | Badshot Lea | 18 December 2024 |
| 30 June 2024 | CB | Ben Casey | | |
| 30 June 2024 | CM | Charlie Davis | | |
| 30 June 2024 | CM | Edward Gyamfi | | |
| 30 June 2024 | LB | Alfie King | | |
| 30 June 2024 | DM | Jake Livermore | | |
| 29 January 2025 | LW | Ken Sema | Pafos | 31 January 2025 |

## Pre-season and friendlies

On 22 May, Watford announced their initial pre-season schedule, with friendlies against Reading (behind closed doors), Boreham Wood, Stevenage, Gillingham, Wycombe Wanderers and Brentford. On 13 June, they added an away match against Scottish side Hibernian.
Win  Draw  Loss  Fixtures

## Competitions
### Championship
#### League table

| Pos | Teamvte | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts |
| 8 | Middlesbrough | 38 | 15 | 9 | 14 | 57 | 48 | +9 | 54 |
| 9 | Blackburn Rovers | 38 | 15 | 7 | 16 | 42 | 40 | +2 | 52 |
| 10 | Watford | 38 | 15 | 7 | 16 | 47 | 51 | −4 | 52 |
| 11 | Millwall | 38 | 13 | 12 | 13 | 38 | 39 | −1 | 51 |
| 12 | Sheffield Wednesday | 37 | 14 | 9 | 14 | 53 | 58 | −5 | 51 |

#### Results summary

| Overall | Overall | Overall | Overall | Overall | Overall | Overall | Overall | Home | Home | Home | Home | Home | Home | Away | Away | Away | Away | Away | Away |
Last updated: 11 March 2025. Source: Soccerway

#### Results by round

| Round | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 20 | 21 | 22 | 23 | 24 | 25 | 26 | 19$^1$ | 27 | 28 | 29 | 30 | 31 | 32 | 33 | 34 | 35 | 36 | 37 | 38 | 39 | 40 | 41 | 42 | 43 | 44 | 45 | 46 |
| Ground | A | H | H | A | H | A | H | A | H | A | A | H | A | A | H | A | H | H | A | H | A | H | H | A | H | A | A | H | A | H | A | H | A | H | A | H | H | A | H | A | H | A | H | A | A | H |
| Result | W | W | W | L | D | L | W | L | W | L | L | W | W | L | W | D | W | D | D | W | L | W | L | L | L | D | W | L | L | L | D | L | W | W | D | L | W | | | | | | | | | |
| Position | 7 | 3 | 2 | 3 | 5 | 8 | 7 | 8 | 6 | 8 | 9 | 5 | 5 | 6 | 6 | 5 | 5 | 6 | 8 | 7 | 7 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 9 | 12 | 10 | 13 | 10 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 10 | | | | | | | | | |
| Points | 3 | 6 | 9 | 9 | 10 | 10 | 13 | 13 | 16 | 16 | 16 | 19 | 22 | 22 | 25 | 26 | 29 | 30 | 31 | 34 | 34 | 37 | 37 | 37 | 37 | 38 | 41 | 41 | 41 | 41 | 42 | 42 | 45 | 48 | 49 | 49 | 52 | | | | | | | | | |
* $^1$ Matchday 19 (vs. Cardiff City) was postponed due to advice from the Met Office, Cardiff Council and South Wales Police.

#### Matches

On 26 June, the Championship fixtures were announced.
Win  Draw  Loss  Fixtures

### FA Cup

Watford joined the FA Cup at the third round stage, and were drawn away against Fulham.
Win  Draw  Loss  Fixtures

### EFL Cup

On 27 June, the draw for the first round was made, with Watford being drawn at home against Milton Keynes Dons. In the second round, they were drawn at home to Plymouth Argyle. On 28 August, Watford drew against the prior season's Premier League champions Manchester City in an away clash at the Etihad Stadium.
Win  Draw  Loss  Fixtures

## Statistics
### Appearances and goals

    As of match played 11 March 2025
Players with no appearances are not included on the list Italics indicate a loaned in player
| No. | Pos. | Nat. | Name | League | League | FA Cup | FA Cup | EFL Cup | EFL Cup | Total | Total | Discipline | Discipline |
| No. | Pos. | Nat. | Name | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | | |
| 1 | GK | AUT | Daniel Bachmann | 22 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 22 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| 2 | DF | ENG | Jeremy Ngakia | 16+4 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 16+4 | 1 | 4 | 0 |
| 3 | DF | CHI | Francisco Sierralta | 18+8 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 20+8 | 0 | 9 | 0 |
| 4 | FW | CMR | Kévin Keben | 2+2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2+2 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 5 | DF | SCO | Ryan Porteous | 18+4 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 21+4 | 2 | 6 | 0 |
| 6 | DF | ENG | Mattie Pollock | 35+2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1+2 | 1 | 36+2 | 2 | 5 | 0 |
| 7 | FW | ENG | Tom Ince | 10+16 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 4 | 14+16 | 5 | 0 | 0 |
| 8 | MF | GEO | Giorgi Chakvetadze | 35+1 | 2 | 0+1 | 0 | 0+1 | 0 | 35+3 | 2 | 6 | 0 |
| 9 | FW | DEN | Mileta Rajović | 0+3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 2+3 | 3 | 1 | 0 |
| 10 | MF | MAR | Imran Louza | 21+3 | 2 | 0+1 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 24+4 | 2 | 7 | 0 |
| 11 | MF | IRE | Rocco Vata | 8+16 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1+2 | 0 | 10+18 | 4 | 0 | 0 |
| 12 | FW | SWE | Ken Sema | 4+10 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 7+10 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 14 | MF | BEL | Pierre Dwomoh | 3+1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0+1 | 0 | 4+2 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 15 | DF | CRO | Antonio Tikvić | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0+2 | 0 | 1+2 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| 17 | MF | FRA | Moussa Sissoko | 26+7 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 26+7 | 3 | 2 | 0 |
| 19 | FW | CIV | Vakoun Issouf Bayo | 20+10 | 9 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 21+10 | 9 | 2 | 1 |
| 20 | FW | MLI | Mamadou Doumbia | 6+6 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0+2 | 0 | 7+8 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| 21 | DF | ITA | Angelo Ogbonna | 5+1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 7+1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 22 | DF | ENG | James Morris | 12+3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 15+3 | 0 | 3 | 0 |
| 23 | GK | ENG | Jonathan Bond | 8+1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 12+1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 24 | MF | NGA | Tom Dele-Bashiru | 19+1 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 2+1 | 0 | 21+2 | 4 | 1 | 0 |
| 25 | DF | IRL | James Abankwah | 10+1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 10+1 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| 26 | DF | USA | Caleb Wiley | 0+2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0+2 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 33 | GK | NOR | Egil Selvik | 7 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 0 | 2 | 0 |
| 34 | FW | GER | Kwadwo Baah | 15+10 | 4 | 0+1 | 0 | 2+1 | 1 | 16+12 | 5 | 5 | 1 |
| 37 | DF | ALG | Yasser Larouci | 25+10 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1+1 | 0 | 27+11 | 0 | 2 | 0 |
| 39 | MF | COD | Edo Kayembe | 30+6 | 8 | 1 | 0 | 0+1 | 0 | 31+7 | 8 | 6 | 0 |
| 45 | DF | ENG | Ryan Andrews | 19+12 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 22+12 | 3 | 2 | 0 |
| 49 | FW | ENG | Michael Adu-Poku | 0+1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0+1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 52 | MF | ENG | Leo Ramirez-Espain | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0+2 | 0 | 0+2 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 53 | FW | AFG | Amin Nabizada | 0+1 | 0 | 0+1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0+2 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Players who featured whilst on loan but returned to parent club on loan during the season: ||||||||||||||
| 18 | FW | CAN | Daniel Jebbison | 3+10 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3+10 | 0 | 2 | 0 |
| 36 | DF | IRL | Festy Ebosele | 7+11 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1+0 | 0 | 8+11 | 1 | 5 | 0 |