HIGHLIGHTS

•  Watford are in advanced contract talks with goalkeeper Daniel Bachmann over a new long-term deal.
•  The Austrian goalkeeper has just one year remaining on his current deal at Vicarage Road.
•  The 29-year-old was reported to be on the shortlist of a number of Championship clubs this summer looking for a goalkeeper.

It is now just 12 days until Watford kick off their 2023/24 Championship campaign, with a home tie versus QPR up first for the Hornets.

The last time the two sides met back in March, Chris Wilder was taking charge of his first league game as Watford boss, and it will be the same for Valerien Ismael when he leads the club from the touchline on August 5th.

Interestingly, over the last 12 months, despite the constant change in the head coach position, whether it was Rob Edwards, Slaven Bilic, Chris Wilder, or now Valerien Ismael, they all either used, or look set to use, Daniel Bachmann as their number one goalkeeper.

Watford in advanced contract talks with Daniel Bachmann

Perhaps that is why the club are currently close to tying the shot-stopper down to a new deal at Vicarage Road.

That is the case according to TEAMtalk, who have reported that the Hornets are in advanced discussions with Bachmann over a new deal.

Their report reveals that Bachmann is set to remain first choice under new boss Valerien Ismael, and that with Bachmann entering the final year of his contract, the club are keen to secure his long-term future.

If Watford did not act, they could potentially risk losing Bachmann on a free transfer next summer.

Championship interest in Daniel Bachmann

The above comes amid recent reports claiming that there is solid Championship interest in the Austrian goalkeeper this summer, too.

Indeed, Alan Nixon via Patreon reported earlier this month that Watford were facing losing their goalkeeper, with clubs circling for a cut-price deal due to Bachmann’s contract situation.

A number of clubs, it was reported, had Bachmann on their list of targets as they searched for a new goalkeeper this summer.

How did Daniel Bachmann perform at Watford last season?

Despite Maduka Okoye’s arrival at the club, Daniel Bachmann managed to keep hold of the number one shirt at Watford ahead of 22/23, with Rob Edwards preferring the Austrian keeper to the club’s new arrival.

Since then, Bachmann has remained number one despite several changes of head coach.

The 29-year-old made 45 Championship appearances last campaign, for example, keeping 16 clean sheets during those matches.

His shot-stopping was impressive at times, too, it must be said, particularly early in the season.

However, it would be negligent not to mention some of the complaints that are levelled at the Austrian.

These are mainly surrounding his distribution, due to occasions when the quality of his passing and kicking can be found wanting.

Should Watford sign Daniel Bachmann to a new contract?

On the one hand, you can understand why the Hornets have acted.

This way, they protect their asset from moving on for free next summer, and just because he signs a long-term deal, it doesn’t mean he will spend all of those years at Vicarage Road.

However, with big question marks over how Bachmann may suit the style of football Valerien Ismael wants to play in WD18, this perhaps does come as a bit of a surprise.

Particularly given he was being linked with other Championship clubs, albeit unnamed clubs, just a few weeks ago.

It will certainly be interesting to see how the Austrian copes with the new style of play set to be implemented in WD18.