Roy Hodgson makes Aston Villa transfer claim ahead of Steven Gerrard reunion

Watford manager Roy Hodgson has said that Aston Villa’s good work in the transfer window has made the game an even tougher prospect for his team.

The former England manager is looking to lead the Hornets to safety but is still searching for his first win since arriving at Vicarage Road last month.

His next game sees him come up against one of his former players in Steven Gerrard, who has had a positive impact since arriving at Villa Park.

As well as seeing an upturn in results, the former Liverpool man has also helped to attract the likes of Philippe Coutinho and Lucas Digne to the club during the January transfer window.

Coutinho has already made an impact, scoring twice and providing a further two assists in his four Premier League appearances so far.

Speaking ahead of the game, Hodgson has praised Villa’s transfer activity, saying that it makes the prospect of facing the side an even tougher one.

"They're a good team, Aston Villa," he said (via HertsLive ).

"They've been a good team for a long while. But Steven has obviously had a big impact, he's bought one or two very important players into the club, or players have been brought in this January transfer window which has made them, if anything, even stronger, even more potent as an attacking force.

"We know that they are a very lively attacking team with some very, very dangerous attacking players.

"They were like that last season before they added [Philippe] Coutinho, [Emi] Buendia and [Lucas] Digne. So we know that's going to be a question that's going to be asked of us.

"The task for us is a tough one. But it was always going to be a tough one. Certainly, Steven's arrival at the club, and the good work he's done, hasn't made that task any easier."

Hodgson