Roberto Pereyra could go on to become Watford's answer to Marek Hamsik, or such is the view of one Italian football reporter who spoke to the Watford Observer.

Felice Lanzaro, who covers Pereyra's old club Juventus for SpazioJ.it, believes the 25-year-old could follow in the footsteps of the talented Slovakian midfielder, who rose to prominence under the wing of Walter Mazzarri - now Pereyra's new boss at Watford - when the pair worked together at Napoli.

Pereyra has been seen as the missing link in Mazzarri's three-man midfield at Vicarage Road, which was stifled of creativity in their opening-day draw at Southampton.

And Lanzaro said the Argentine would be equally adept in a role just in behind two front men, or further withdrawn, having played in both positions during his two-year spell at Juventus.

"He started off as a right winger when he played for River Plate in Argentina," he said. "But after a few months at Udinese he was moved into a more central attacking role.

"At Juve he was played behind two strikers, and that role suits him well. At Watford, he might play a little further back and could do the same as Hamsik did at Napoli; if the results are the same he will be a great player for the club."

One minor concern raised was with Pereyra's fitness, which cut his Serie A appearances by almost two thirds last season.

But Lanzaro believes if he can put those issues behind him, he could make a significant impact in the Premier League.

"In his last season with Juventus he played only 16 games in the whole campaign; even then, he often started on the bench.

"The Premier League could be harder than Serie A in terms of the type of football, but that is my only doubt on him - he is a very good player."