New Watford defender William Troost-Ekong is no stranger to Vicarage Road despite having never played football in England higher than youth level.

The former Fulham and Tottenham youngster's father-in-law has been a season ticket holder at the club for 15 years and has brought the Nigerian to watch the Hornets on several occasions.

Troost-Ekong was present when his Nigerian teammate Odion Ighalo scored twice in a 3-0 victory over Liverpool in 2015 and he said the striker was one of several reasons why he wanted to make the move to Hertfordshire.

“I came with him a few times when I didn't have to play myself,” Troost-Ekong told the club website. “The best game was probably when Ighalo was on fire against Liverpool. I heard about the interest a few weeks ago and was excited about it. I've been waiting for it to happen the last seven days and now I'm excited to be here. I met the lads, there is a good vibe and it's easy to settle in.

“Ighalo used to be my roommate. I spoke to Odion last week. He only had good things to say about the club. He’s a great guy, a fantastic player and like a big brother for me."

As well as Ighalo, Troost-Ekong also has a good friendship with defender Ben Wilmot, who he first met during the second half of the 2018/19 season when the former Stevenage man went out on loan to Italy.

The 27-year-old is looking forward to rekindling that friendship once again.

“He's a younger lad and I tried to help him out as much as I could,” he said. “I know how difficult it is to arrive there and not speak the language. I feel at home in Hertfordshire [as my in-laws are here] and he's from Stevenage so we had a connection, also with him playing at the back. It's good to see him again and hopefully we can play a lot together.”

Troost-Ekong's links with Watford players do not stop there. Having played for fellow Pozzo-owned club Udinese, his path has crossed those of several other players to have featured for both sides.

“I am quite close with Marvin Zeegelaar and Stefano Okaka and they know the club inside out,” he said. “And then there was [Valon] Behrami before that. I've listened to their experiences and now I want to make my own. They all had good things to say and I'm excited to be here. It was really great to be part of an exciting time at Udinese for two years, but there comes a time to take the next step and for me it felt the right next step in my career.

"The best is still to come and I want to try and win the Championship and then play in the Premier League with Watford.”