Ighalo hunts for Black Cats

Sunderland vs. Watford
Venue: Stadium of Light
Kick off: 4pm

Nigerian international, Odion Ighalo, will on Saturday afternoon (today) aim at increasing his goal tally as his Watford outfit take on Sunderland at the stadium of Light.
Ighalo and Troy Deeney’s forms have helped the newly-promoted side climb into the top half of the table.
The duo were both on the scoresheet last weekend, taking the strikers’ totals to nine and five goals respectively so far this season.
The duo’s forms have resulted in transfer speculation ahead of January’s transfer window, with the manager admitting that he is concerned about interest from other clubs.
Deeney is also included on the shortlist for November’s Premier League Player of the Month award.
Meanwhile, both Sunderland and Watford have two wins in their last three outings, but sit at opposite ends of the table, with the newly-promoted Hornets in the top half, while the home side sit in the relegation zone.
Sunderland have started to see their fortunes change following Sam Allardyce’s appointment in October.
The Black Cats finished November with back to back wins, and have won three of their last six outings in the top flight.
A tricky match at the Emirates against Arsenal last weekend saw Sunderland on the wrong side of a 3-1 scoreline though, leaving the team 19th in the table, a point from safety.
The team will be happy to be back on home soil today, having secured the majority of their points at the Stadium of Light this season.
Two of their three victories have been at their own stadium, as have two of their three clean sheets.
Defending has been a real problem for Sunderland this season, with the team conceding 29 goals in their 15 matches so far – only Bournemouth and Newcastle United have let in more.
The team’s attack has been stronger since Allardyce’s arrival though, with the team failing to score in just one of their last six fixtures, netting nine times over the same period.
Watford’s bright start to season continued last weekend, with Quique Flores’s side securing a 2-0 win over Norwich City at Vicarage Road, leaving them with four wins from their last six outings.
Watford were one of the lowest-scoring sides in the top flight in the first couple of months of the campaign, but with 17 goals from 15 matches, the team now have the same number of defending champions Chelsea, and are just one behind Liverpool.
The team has also been strong at the back, keeping six clean sheets while conceding just 16 times – five fewer than league leaders Leicester City, although just one of their clean sheets comes from their last four matches.
Watford’s home and away form has been fairly equal, with half of their six victories coming on the road. The Hornets tend to be involved in higher-scoring fixtures away from home though, scoring and conceding almost twice as often when playing away from Vicarage Road.

Sunderland possible starting lineup: Pantilimon, Coates, O’Shea, Kaboul, Yedlin, M’Vila, Rodwell, Van Aanholt, Borini, Fletcher, Watmore.
Watford possible starting lineup: Gomes, Nyom, Cathcart, Britos, Ake, Anya, Watson, Capoue, Abdi, Ighalo, Deeney.