‘It makes all the difference’ – Troost-Ekong reacts after fans attended Watford game

William Troost-Ekong was elated having fans cheering them on as Watford hosted West Bromwich Albion in a pre-season friendly on Saturday.

The supporters were allowed into Vicarage Road to watch as the Hornets faced the Baggies, a match that ended goalless.

However, that did not take away the joy from the Nigeria international, who enjoyed the cheers in the stadium for the first time in 221 days.

“It was really nice; I think all of us really enjoyed the game [on Saturday],” Troost-Ekong told the club’s official portal.

“It was important just to get the minutes in but playing in front of the fans is something we’ve been waiting to do for a long time.

“It is a bit of a shame we could not give them a goal. I think we were quite close a few times, I would have loved to hear the roar and cheers again.

“When we came out and when they named us on the team sheet, it is nice to hear all the fans here and we are going to need that support this year.

Loved being back at the Vic in front of the fans! Well done to all the young lads with their debuts today 👏🏽 pic.twitter.com/OEcJ8yFg9R

— William Troost-Ekong (@WTroostEkong) July 24, 2021

“It makes all the difference, and I think it was only three or four thousand here but it felt like it was 15 or close to 20 [thousand] because you’re so used to having empty stadiums. Having the support makes all the difference, and it was great.”

The 27-year-old also could not hide his joy seeing some players getting their chance against the Baggies.

“West Brom came out with quite a good team and tried to press us high, but these are the kind of games that you have to play out [from the back] still and the manager asked us to do our job,” Troost-Ekong continued. 

“Credit also to all the young boys who played today; some made their debut and were fantastic.

“I think they all slotted in very well. It’s great to see that there are so many young lads pushing on and trying to be a part of the squad. In the last 15 minutes, it was just Joshua King, Rob Elliot, and Dapo [Mebude] from the first-team squad and they managed to hold their own.”