Watford head into the encounter at Vicarage Road with two wins in the last three including a memorable 3-1 win over Manchester United.
Howe is well aware his side face a tough test against the Hornets and
"It will be a tight game," he started.
"Watford are a very good team at home and have played Chelsea, Arsenal and Manchester United in recent weeks.
"I think they're very strong and in particular the two front players.
"They pose a physical threat from long balls and Ighalo and Deeney are a good partnership - either of them can also drop in and link the play so they can do everything.
"They've changed the system slightly to three at the back, that gives the two up front less defensive responsibilities and this season the goals have been shared around their team.
"We've had some really good games against Watford in recent years."
Ahead of the trip to face Walter Mazzarri side, Howe is confident that Joshua King could return while Marc Pugh is a little way off a comeback.
He continued: "Joshua King has done some light training this week.
"It's not too bad, while Marc Pugh is improving, but is still a couple of weeks away. Other than that we don't have many concerns."
