From The Athletic: Watford aiming to cut wage bill by 30% – 18 could go, including Sarr and Dennis please log in to view this image By Adam Leventhal Jul 4, 2022 15 One signing in, Vakoun Bayo. But it’s not beyond the realms of possibility that a full match-day squad’s worth of players will leave Watford by the end of the transfer window. Captain Moussa Sissoko’s exit to Nantes made it 10 and counting after Ben Foster, Peter Etebo, Joshua King, Nicolas Nkoulou, Cucho Hernandez, Juraj Kucka, Rob Elliot, Andre Gray and Philip Zinckernagel had all departed. One or both of Emmanuel Dennis and Ismaila Sarr will likely follow, while Danny Rose is training away from Watford and looking for a way out which could take the tally to 13. Add in the uncertainty over Adam Masina, Kiko Femenia, Hassane Kamara and Daniel Bachmann to one (or more) of William Troost-Ekong, Samir, Christian Kabasele or Francisco Sierralta leaving the central defensive unit — if the right offer comes in — and you could be at 18 in no time. The club are working hard to sell Adalberto Penaranda, while Ignacio Pussetto (still technically a Watford player) is unlikely to stay, too. One thing is certain: the wage bill will be dropping again. Relegation clauses for those unwilling to absorb salary cuts of between 30 to 50 per cent has already been a key sub-plot to pre-season. Many players are still weighing up their options based on sporting and financial considerations. The Athletic has learnt that Watford envisage cutting the wage bill by approximately 30 per cent this summer. It’s part of a slimming-down trend that began after the 2019-20 relegation, when the club had got a little too bloated. Two relegations and a pandemic have exacerbated the trimming process. The Pozzos’ (and club’s all-time) revenue peak of 2019 was £147 million, but the wages-to-turnover ratio was in rude health at just 57 per cent. Then, although there was the club’s best Premier League finish of 11th and an FA Cup final to feel good about, things got worse. Revenue dropped to £119 million but wages grew to £96 million and the ratio ballooned from 57 to 80 per cent. That’s OK if you’re confident of staying up, but not wise if the drop is hanging over you. COVID-19, with its associated loss of match-day and commercial revenue, helped turn the screw and put that ratio the wrong side of 100 per cent (119 per cent) due to a fall in revenue to just £57 million, as noted in the last accounts. The wage bill simply had to be subbed down, and it fell by 29 per cent to £68 million. The shock effect of that 2020 relegation meant that when Watford bounced straight back up, the club insisted on big salary cuts if they went down again. That deterred some players from signing on for last season and, if they did, sticking around after another relegation. The stakes have been raised further by that season-long stay in the Premier League. This has resulted in only two years of parachute payments (the first payment is understood to be approximately £40 million) rather than three consecutively, which means there is a clear desire to be steady this summer rather than spectacular when it comes to the transfer market. But whether those already in the building have the quality to mount a promotion challenge is the question that, behind the scenes, Watford are wrestling with. Although nothing will be read into the 3-1 pre-season defeat against Cambridge United, they are waiting by the phone for the potential suitors of Dennis and Sarr to get the conversation started. Although being strongly linked with Everton, there has been no official bid for Dennis as yet. Watford are putting feelers out via agents to try to get those high-ticket deals done. As and when the offers start to drop — and they are aware the appetite for Sarr in particular isn’t as strong as they would have wished — they will be able to focus on trying to break even following relegation. Then Watford can work out if there’s much left for strengthening thanks to the dip in wages and money received in transfer fees. All that is coupled with the unknown of whether Rob Edwards — who has developed players in various roles during his career, with Wolves, England and Forest Green Rovers — can polish up youngsters who have been on the fringes (or, for that matter, older players who might feel they have been left on the shelf). Returning loanees Tom Dele-Bashiru, Domingos Quina, Joseph Hungbo and Mattie Pollock should get a chance. please log in to view this image Edwards has a reputation for working with young talent (Photo: Luke Walker/Getty Images) That would certainly be a step in the right direction. It would bring down the average age of the squad for a start. Averaging 28.4 years, Watford’s had the second-oldest squad in the Premier League last season, while the average age of those who have since left is 31. The four mentioned, plus goalkeeper Pontus Dahlberg, have an average age of 22. There is also a benefit in drawing on existing resources rather than swelling the squad again. Last season Watford used 30 players (the third most in the division) and, even with 10 players gone this summer, 19 players who featured regularly last season remain. It’s 24 if you include Kwadwo Baah, James Morris, Shaq Forde, Tiago Cukur and Vincent Angelini. There have been significant cuts in academy numbers too: 23 players were jettisoned from the under-18 and 23s. Watford owner Gino Pozzo said he’s built a club founded on the “core principles of stability, sustainability and growth” as he broke cover to mark the 10th anniversary of the 2012 takeover. Stability and Watford, especially when you consider the turnover of players and head coaches, aren’t natural bed partners and that element is up for debate. Sustainability rings true, having punched above their weight so far. Then there’s growth. Stadium and training-ground infrastructure and commercial partnerships aside, at the moment things are evidently being slimmed down on the football side. It appears the Watford hierarchy are simply being risk-averse. For financial reasons, a healthy balance sheet helps the possibility of outside investment, for example. On the pitch, the hope will be a more humble approach, with a sprinkling of well-thought-out recruitment, can lead to the perfect fusion of football and financial decision-making. Whether that turns out as planned, however, we shall see.
Common sense really. Our squad was exposed as simply being not good enough last season, and it didn't exactly shine in the Championship the season before. I'm sure those youngsters mentioned will make the grade - with the possible exception of Cukur, unless Edwards can magic something out of him - but whether or not that means another promotion next season is anyone's guess. I just hope that we actually perform well consistently, consolidate and gain enough experience to mount a successful promotion push the season after.
This rumour has already been posted - but from memory, not this part of it - "The good news for Watford is that the signing wouldn’t come with a transfer fee attached, with Barcelona only keeping a percentage of a future sale." Quite possibly explains our interest... http://sportwitness.co.uk/watford-pushing-deal-sign-barcelona-player-deal-done-coming-days/
Watford & Barcelona are confident on finalising a deal for striker, Rey Manaj within the next three days. The 25-year-old is excited to be joining a team with aspirations of returning to the English elite. Rather slow on this one OFH.
Two granddaughters to distract me. Eldest wanted to tell me she has passed her exams at Uni. and will go onto the course she wanted.
Who knows - he's never actually played for them I believe. And he's not really from there - he's Albanian. I don't think we ever had an Albanian player before, but could be wrong...
If I remember correctly, Albanians were cheap labour or pickpockets. I might be suffering from memory loss of course.
Been ropey at Bournemouth but we do need a defensive player . This is where the link has come from ; Seems the first one is unreliable.
Where is the airport in Watford I know of four London Airports where he would land by plane (five if you include Luton, but that would be landing in the wrong place)
