Ismaïla Sarr spent the international break recovering from a hamstring injury and marked his return by immediately setting up the winning goal against Sheffield Wednesday.
The Senegalese winger collected an Adam Masina pass and drilled in a dangerous cross after seven minutes which Tom Lees was forced to put into his own net, earning Watford a sixth straight win in the Championship.
“I feel much better now. I’ve worked a lot during this international break to recover, so now I feel fit,” said Sarr, who has four assists and nine goals already this season.
“I’m very happy, but it’s not only me. I’m happy when everyone is happy around the team; the players, the staff and the supporters as well. All I can do is keep working hard, which I did. I gave my contribution and I’m happy because everyone is happy.”
Once again Sarr proved one of Watford’s key threats on the right wing against the Owls, particularly impressing with his almost telepathic link-up play with Kiko Femenía.
“I love playing with Kiko,” said Sarr. “Although we don’t speak the same language, we understand each other on the pitch. When we have the ball, we know exactly what to do.”
The win leaves Watford just six points behind Norwich City in first place, yet Sarr is focused on securing automatic promotion in second place rather than dreaming of silverware.
“I don’t think about the title, because the main goal is to go up to the Premier League, so we’re focused on keeping on picking up three points,” he said. “Whether we win the league or not, that’s not important. We have to keep working to improve, get more points and go up, but first place is not an obsession.”
Sarr’s determination to return to the top flight is largely driven by his desire to repay supporters who have stuck by the team through relegation, ensuring they will once again be watching Premier League football when it is deemed safe for them to return.
“Supporters give you that extra push, to win the game and to play as best you can,” said the 23-year-old, who famously scored twice against Liverpool the last time Vicarage Road was full.
“Now the supporters are not here, so we need to keep pushing in order to be ready for when they are back. Supporters make sacrifices to follow us, and supporters give us a push. All we can do is try to return something to them, and obviously go up and enjoy the moment together.”
