Zola: 'Vydra could be important to us' (From Watford Observer)

Gianfranco Zola hopes Watford signing Matej Vydra can fulfil potential in the Championship

11:40am Tuesday 14th August 2012 in Sport By Lewis Wood-Thompson

Watford boss Gianfranco Zola believes new signing Matej Vydra has the potential to set Vicarage Road alight this season.

Vydra is one of six players to have joined the Hornets on a season-long loan from Udinese and Granada – two clubs also owned by the Pozzo family.

The striker, who is returning from a long-term injury, has only featured twice during pre-season but he has impressed in both fixtures, scoring twice against Gillingham.

Speaking after Watford’s Capital One Cup victory over Wycombe Wanderers last Saturday, Zola said: “I think he has got in his bag what it takes to be an important player for this club.

“I am pleased for him, today his performance has been very good and I am sure he can improve.

“He’s young, he’s got a lot of potential and he can be a good player.”

Despite the injury that has plagued Vydra’s pre-season preparations, the forward still managed to play the full 120 minutes against Wycombe and he had a hand in the winner.

After being slipped through on goal, Vydra’s chipped effort was parried by the keeper before Chris Iwelumo arrived to bundle the ball home.

Zola said: “He had a couple of opportunities in the first half and he has done very well.

"It wasn’t in our plans to keep him on the pitch so long, but I had to.”

Twenty-year-old Vydra, an Under-21 Czech International, started his career at Jihlava in the Czech Republic, scoring five goals in 27 appearances.

This earned him a move to top division side Banik Ostrava, where he scored four goals in 14 matches before making the switch to Italian club Udinese.

A loan move to Belgian outfit Club Brugge soon followed but Vydra was limited to only one appearance due to injury and he returned to Udinese before making his move to the Hornets this summer.

Vydra has also represented his country from Under-16 level up to the Under-21 squad, scoring ten goals in 38 appearances along the way.