I think this is worthy of a new and unique thread: Slavisa Jokanovic is unlikely to remain in charge at Watford after the Serbian turned down the Hornets' latest contract offer please log in to view this image Slavisa Jokanovic is unlikely to be the Hornets' head coach next season. The Watford Observer understands the Serbian has turned down the Golden Boys’ contract offer and the club have started to search for a replacement in case an agreement can’t be reached. The former Chelsea midfielder guided Watford into the Premier League this season but his current deal expires this summer. Negotiations to extend Jokanovic’s have been ongoing since the end of the campaign but it is believed the stumbling block in discussions is the 46-year-old’s wage demands. Talks have not ended but while the Hornets would like Jokanovic to remain at the club they have identified alternatives should a deal not be agreed. Spanish coach Quique Sanchez Flores is believed to be the club’s first choice to succeed Jokanovic and national media have reported Watford are already negotiating with the former Atletico Madrid boss.
I think this is crazy 1) How much do the Pozzos value their head coaches?? 2) Is Joka really asking for too much?? 3) How good is this for the club, the team and the fans??
From SSN: Jokanovic out, Flores in? Last Updated: 26/05/15 13:22 please log in to view this image Slavisa Jokanovic: Set to leave Watford despite promotion Watford have offered Quique Sanchez Flores their head coach role after failing to agree a deal with Slavisa Jokanovic, according to Sky sources. It is understood Jokanovic, the man who led Watford to automatic promotion from the Championship after arriving in October, will not be in charge next season. And sources say Flores, who has previously managed Valencia, Benfica and Atletico Madrid, is the club's preferred candidate on a three-man shortlist also featuring Roberto Di Matteo. The former Chelsea boss is available after quitting German club Schalke on Tuesday, while Flores has been without a job since resigning from his second spell at Getafe in February. Sky Sports Spanish football pundit Guillem Balague says that negotiations are on-going but he believes that Flores would be a perfect fit for Watford. He told Sky Sports News HQ: "He has always wanted to coach in the Premier League so once Watford arrived he was interested. Talks have been going really well but negotiations are still taking place. He has also had an offer from Getafe but the lure of the Premier League will be a strong one. "He has been preparing himself. Having worked in Dubai and UAE he has been coaching in English and for me he would be a very good match for Watford." An appointment at Vicarage Road is expected next week, but in the meantime Watford are pressing ahead with their summer recruitment.
Grrr, technology sucks! Just wrote a long post which didn't post so to cut it short... I think the problem is foreign head coaches that don't want to move their family over. The enticement to stay and be away from home has to be a big one and the Pozzos don't work that way. If the draw of the premier league at Watford isn't enough, then he isn't the man for us.
Shame if he goes - but 7 months ago nobody had heard of him - if he can slot into the Pozzo set up after 3 other managers in a season and two months into it then I am sure the Pozzos can find someone now? He does not have a record of staying with clubs long - perhaps he always asks for a hefty salary and does not always find someone willing to match it.
Slav was a great manager for what was needed to get us the promotion the pozzos wanted. The job to manage a prem team is a different one with a different skillset needed. In the same way that some players will better fit the prem than they did the championship and others who excelled in the championship will not cut it the same is true for the manager. I hope he does well but I've had a niggling doubt that he'd be the man for the job now we are up. I trust the pozzos assessment, personally if I were them I would have tried moving him to Grenada especially if they had been relegated. We shall see if they are correct or if indeed the saga is over wrt Slav but I'd be surprised if it isn't a new "fit for purpose" manager that's in place next week.
I don't like this. He turned it round and made some really brave decisions - and brought the squad together. We do not know what he has asked for in terms of wages so it may or may not be excessive. For now I am on his side.
I think that most of us would like for sj to have a crack at the EPL BUT its the Pozzos paying his wages and if he will not take the deal that they offer then some one will
Roberto Di Matteo lives in Leamington Spa I believe, so no re-housing required. While on gardening leave from Chelsea he spent quite a lot of time at Watford. He therefore knows the family and set up. He is available and has a proven record in the Prem. I would have made him favourite unless he wants too much money. Still cannot believe that it was a simple cash issue with SJ.
If the reports are true then simple isn't the word. They claim he was after a 250% rise - which equates to an extra £1m. Having said that, it's a bit hard to believe that, in this day and age in the EPL, the Pozzos would baulk at a wage of around £27K a week for a Head Coach - so maybe you are right, there's more to it than money.
If I had been in his shoes, unlikely I know, I would have wanted to see a very good deal for the club terminating my contract looking at their record of hiring and firing. They might have refused to upgrade his car from the current Fiat Panda, or told him to change from Spanish to Italian wine.
I shouldn't worry too much. The head coach merrygoround is not what we're used to but McKinley aside there's no controversy on the Pozzo's part and I imagine he got a decent fare theme well into the bargain. Not ideal, but then we're not the hacks and this latest round aside we know what's what. The Pozzo's will not put the head coach's salary above the well being of the club. And for that at least we should be thankful. We all are already.
You would have thought a decent bonus system could've been sorted. A double now from 400k to 800k and the other 400k as a bonus for staying up?
You would have to wonder, though, what impact that would have on the player/coach relationship. That contract would put him well under those of some of the players he was trying to manage.
Just a thought.... what price an intact reputation...... against struggling until January and getting the push then? I'm not sure that head coaches anywhere have much of a deal at the moment. And we don't really kow the exact sequence of events yet. If we don't want to yo-yo maybe we need a different approach.
Sad but true Yorkie. SJ is the fifth manager to get us promoted - following on from such names as Ron Burgess, Ken Furphy, Graham Taylor and Aidy Boothroyd and nothing can take that away from him, I just never thought it could happen in this way at our club.
