OPINION

Kwadwo Baah can get Watford’s campaign going against QPR.

The roar from the away end at The Valley whenever Kwadwo Baah took possession in space spoke volumes.

Watford fans focus much of their optimism on Baah, a player who was barely on the radar a year ago but is now approaching talisman status. The 22-year-old only played 35% of available minutes last season, but the Hornets’ most productive periods coincided with when he was at his peak.

But it was Baah’s decisive influence in games that did not go Watford’s way that highlighted his importance.

The explosive winger won a late penalty at home to Sunderland, scored the winner against Middlesbrough, and brilliantly assisted equalisers at Hull and Cardiff to earn his team points that would not have been possible without him.

That ability to bend the game to his will is something Paulo Pezzolano could really use against QPR on Saturday, as he looks for a win to kickstart his reign at Vicarage Road. The head coach emphasises time and patience as his team strives to be the best version of themselves throughout the season.

While any major concern after only two losses – one of which was a narrow defeat following a promising performance, the other set in motion by a very poor 45 minutes from what was largely a second string – is premature, it is clear that the Uruguayan could use a good day to get the 2025/26 wheels turning.

Baah, with his ability to turn water into wine, has the potential to change the game.

Ba’ath was ultimately well defended at Charlton, but he still posed a threat, and perhaps should have set up the opener when he had Mamadou Doumbia waiting for a simple tap-in but instead passed it back to Luca Kjerrumgaard.

However, against Norwich City in the Carabao Cup on Tuesday, the electricity that had been missing from Watford’s performance was restored as soon as he entered the game in the 61st minute.

Kwadwo Baah in training (Image: Alan Cozzi/Watford FC)

He outpaced his full-back and scored less than ten minutes after coming on, and he continued to provide the most likely route to an equaliser.

Pezzolano stated after the game, “He is a very explosive player. “We know his quality and that depending on the opposition we can position him on either side.” That is a reference to Baah’s cameo from the left flank, which the winger told The Watford Observer was his best position earlier this summer because it increased his scoring threat.

Baah terrorises full-backs on either wing with his pace, strength, and excellent ball control.

While he is a remarkably direct player, it is worth noting that he rarely runs the ball out of play, instead appearing to win a corner at worst.

While he is a remarkably direct player, it is worth noting that he rarely runs the ball out of play, instead appearing to win a corner at worst. His talent is such that if he had been in the squad from January onwards last season, the Hornets would have gone close to finishing in the top six, an absence that still applies this season.

Baah suffered a significant tear to his thigh against Preston at the beginning of the year and sustained a recurrence during his starting comeback at Bristol City

in April, a situation that needs managing as he builds his workload and because specifically his style may exacerbate it.

Kwadwo Baah’s excellent 2024/25 season (Image: PA) He was removed after an hour last week, and Pezzolano was keen to emphasise on Tuesday that his team is not overly reliant on the forward.

He stated: “Every team has players who can make a difference. “We believe that KB [Baah] can be one of those players for us, as well as Nestory [Irankunda] and [Giorgi] Chakvetadze when he is available. “Then we have Luca [Kjerrumgaard] and Vivaldo [Semedo].

We also have players down the middle, such as [Moussa] Sissoko and [Edo] Kayembe. Even the fullbacks.

If the Hornets are to score their first points of the season on Saturday, it’s clear who will do the most damage.

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