I was lucky enough to make Garth’s Team of the Week on a couple of occasions during my Watford days, although it has to be said I was not always put in the position where I had played on the pitch.
When I helped Watford beat Arsenal in the FA Cup quarter-finals in 2016, he picked me but used me as a holding midfielder instead of a striker. That was a new one on me, to be honest!
I know Garth was famous for sometimes choosing unusual formations like that, but I am going to do things a bit differently. In my team, I promise players will be in their correct positions for starters!
Being serious though, it’s a real privilege to continue the incredible work Garth has already done with this piece. I can’t wait to get started and I have already given plenty of thought to my own selection criteria before the new Premier League season begins on Friday.
The first thing I’d say I am going to be looking out for in a player is their bravery or fearlessness on the ball, but I am also going to try to recognise some of the unsung heroes each week – so, any players who might not be in the spotlight or have done anything spectacular for their side, but who I think have played a key part in a big performance.
At the same time, I won’t ignore the obvious candidates. If Liverpool go to Ipswich on the opening weekend and Mohamed Salah scores a hat-trick, then he is definitely going to be in my team, don’t worry about that!
What I really want to do though, is judge players who are going for the same spots by the same standards.
For example, we now kind of expect Erling Haaland to score every week for Manchester City but just because that has become the norm for him doesn’t mean he will have to do more than any other striker for me to pick him.
Aston Villa’s Ollie Watkins also set a high bar last season when he scored 19 Premier League goals, and it was the same with Brentford’s Ivan Toney in the campaign before that.
Should they get in ahead of Haaland if they score but still do less than him on a particular weekend? No, definitely not.