Watford player makes claim on promotion rivals Norwich City and Sheffield United | OneFootball

Watford goalkeeper Daniel Bachmann believes Norwich City and Sheffield United are currently performing to their maximum at this stage, speaking to the Watford Observer.

Dean Smith’s Canaries endured a sticky start to the campaign but have recovered exceptionally well since then, benefitting from the fact they didn’t need a rebuild with their first-teamers collaborating well to put an unbeaten run together.

They haven’t been beaten in the league since mid-August – and have the chance to go top tonight with a victory against fellow high-flyers Reading – with their reasonably solid defence contributing heavily to their positive form.

Quiz: Did Watford win, draw or lose the last time they played at these 18 stadiums?

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Did Watford win, lose or draw the last time they played at Goodison Park?

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They currently sit behind the Blades, who have been the most consistent team in the division so far this season with Oli McBurnie’s upturn in form helping to guide them to the summit of the second-tier table.

Paul Heckingbottom’s side have been in good form throughout the former Leeds United manager’s tenure at the helm – and have the squad depth at their disposal to suffer a few injuries but remain reasonably unaffected.

The Hornets, on the other hand, are currently sitting in seventh position following an underwhelming start to the season under former boss Rob Edwards, and Bachmann is one man who believes they have a lot of room for improvement unlike two of their potential promotion rivals.

He said: “I think Sheffield United and Norwich are probably at their highest level now, the best they can be. We’ve barely even got to 50% of our capabilities.

“We’ve got nowhere near what we can be and what we should be, and yet we’re seven or eight points behind them. That’s how we should look at it.”

The Verdict:

Consistency is all that matters in this division and this is why the Blades and the Canaries won’t mind these comments too much.

As long as they can continue to pick up points at a consistent rate, they have a real chance of remaining above the Hornets in the table and in the end, Bachmann’s side’s slow start to the season could prove costly for them in their quest to win a top-two spot.

You can understand what the Austrian is saying though – because they put in an excellent shift on Sunday and showed what they can do when on top form. It’s just about ensuring they remain on top form for as long as possible.

With Burnley also in the mix for promotion following a productive summer, Slaven Bilic’s side will need to fulfil the potential they have and they can do this by maximising the performance levels of Joao Pedro, Ismaila Sarr, Keinan Davis and Yaser Asprilla in the final third.

Attacking will be the best form of defence for them – and they need to ensure they can keep as many of these four fully for the majority of the season, though they can call on other options like Vakoun Bayo if needed.