I hope you had a Happy Birthday yesterday Scully. UGT is my choice when I have the option, but still prefer the Vicarage Road terrace.
Well I have ended up mid way up the SEJ1 stand as these were the highest 2 tickets available, most tickets were close to the pitch. Just hope it's not too sunny.
Enjoy - at least you'll be far away from visiting rowdies. Make sure you take your "Scully is here" banner for the TV cameras...
I don't know if anyone else has seen reports from The Athletic, I don't subscribe so only read the first couple of paragraphs, suggesting that Gino has decided on a change in the way the club is run. Sounded like he wants to appoint a long term manager as he is fed up with hearing about the hire and fire policy. Sure there was more to it, but I cannot say.
If Everton lose their next four games before coming to Vicarage Road (against Leicester home and away, Liverpool and Chelsea) and Watford pick up points against Manchester City, Burnley or Crystal Palace, then they still have a glimmer of hope of survival. But even the ifs, buts and maybes are rolling their eyes at the thought of that after Saturday’s last-gasp defeat to Brentford. Watford’s hierarchy are already looking to the horizon with a view to a change of approach — whichever division they end up in — after another bitterly disappointing Premier League season. The process of self-reflection has started in the boardroom with a view to changing the club’s attitude towards managerial appointments. There’s an acceptance that the hire-and-fire culture has damaged Watford’s reputation, which is in desperate need of repairing. In the short term, of six remaining games of the season, Roy Hodgson is expected to remain in post as a starting point. The undignified parting of ways with Nigel Pearson with two games left of the 2019-20 season — also when all hope looked to be lost — is unlikely to be repeated, even if a late revival doesn’t appear. It’s known that members of the club’s hierarchy feel that the 74-year-old has had a positive impact and if he’d come in sooner, things could have been different with more time to get his message across. One of the key aspects that is set to change is a culture of short-termism. Decisions used to be made to change the dynamic, which sometimes worked, but when it doesn’t and spirals out of control, disillusionment and discontent follow. It’s unlikely they’ll run before they can walk, but having the aim of appointing a head coach or manager that will be given time to ride out a bad spell is part of the plan. Faith rather than panic, trust rather than toxicity. Stopping the pendulum swinging from attacking coach to defensive coach, stern coach to happy coach, or inexperienced to experienced coach, will need to happen as a first port of call. Taking stock in the summer and going through a proper process is what’s needed. please log in to view this image Goalscorer Emmanuel Dennis looks crestfallen after Watford’s 2-1 defeat to Brentford (Photo: Bradley Collyer/PA Images via Getty Images) Most likely to be wanted is someone who can be longer-term, unlike the appointments of Claudio Ranieri and Roy Hodgson — both respected septuagenarians with authority but coming to the end of their careers, rather than falling into the dynamic, up-and-coming bracket. The appointment of Ranieri is acknowledged in inner circles — similar to that of returning to Quique Sanchez Flores in 2019-20 — as being an error that could have been avoided with better recruitment. Hodgson and Ray Lewington’s work has provided a window into having coaching staff accustomed to the terrain of English football, similar to when Pearson was happy and healthy (he admitted COVID-19 affected him badly). That doesn’t necessarily mean any possible successor to Hodgson would have to be British, but behind the scenes at the club it’s felt that having more of a connection to what Watford means — even if that’s simply a homegrown assistant or former player on the staff — could be of benefit. Dean Austin’s link-up with Slavisa Jokanovic and Sanchez Flores (in his first spell) is a good example of that working well. The last time Watford dropped into the Championship, Vladimir Ivic was appointed, which was a process that, due to the pandemic, meant some of the hierarchy were unable to meet him face-to-face first and had to conduct conversations on video calls. Getting to know more about managers’ personalities — whether they’ll be the right fit and able to energise an environment — will be another key element. It’s been accepted that younger players want to align with someone that they feel will develop and inspire them, and that could be the difference between some wanting to stay or go in the summer. When Watford sacked Javi Gracia after four Premier League games of the 2019-20 season, control started to slip away and the cascade began. Even though there had been a bit of pull and push between the Spaniard and the boardroom in the previous months, it’s known that members of the hierarchy realise they should have risen above that. If the same were to happen in the planned new approach, it’s believed there would be more patience — especially if the recruitment process had been thorough in the first place. Although it could be argued the same situation arose this season with Xisco Munoz, he was a classic “pendulum” appointment — from dour (Ivic) to his sunshine — which worked in the Championship, albeit with a strong squad. When it was accepted he was too inexperienced, then came “worldly wise” Ranieri. “I believe massively in clubs where there is a clear strategy, where everything is aligned from top to bottom, from owner, sports director, to CEO to the coaching staff, and no matter what happens, you stick to it,” Brentford head coach Thomas Frank — who has been given time to grow a culture — tells The Athletic. “That’s why we’ve been successful. I’m 100 per cent sure, although that’s difficult in football, that if our bad form continued and didn’t turn around, I’m convinced I would stay in the job and try and build again, a lot like Norwich did with Daniel Farke, and I thought that was the right decision. “Of course, there can be many reasons there are changes with head coach or manager. For example, with Burnley, we don’t know what’s happened behind the scenes but if you are happy with the head coach, I believe in consistency and a good and calm position.” please log in to view this image Watford owner Gino Pozzo (Photo: Mike Egerton/PA Images via Getty Images) Whoever is next — and Hodgson staying isn’t out of the question — will still need to fit into the Pozzo regime. The owner, sporting director and CEO/chairman are unlikely to move from their offices at the training ground, so scrutiny will naturally come from within. Hodgson hasn’t said publicly that there have been issues with having to have conversations semi-regularly with Gino Pozzo, Cristiano Giaretta or Scott Duxbury about football matters, and any new hire would be encouraged to utilise rather than fear the interaction. It’s expected some support staff changes are likely to help streamline those that surround whoever is in the dugout. Developing a team with an identity that, especially if next season ends up being the Championship, includes promoting players from the academy is what’s desired. Some senior players will leave and be replaced, others will be reintegrated from loans, but the task will be to try and develop a sustainable ethos that can help win promotion or survive in the Premier League — or both, if required. Pozzo breaking the habit of a 10-year reign in charge of the club will understandably lead to fan scepticism and the real test will be if a manager does go through a tricky run when trying to implement new ideas. Perhaps the faith in Hodgson is the first sign. The proof will be not in what happens over the next six games but the summer. This is a tipping point which the club can’t afford to become a slide.
Thanks for that. Clearly there are issues about keeping a management team happy when the owner is peering over their shoulders everyday of the week. Will Hodgson actually want to do another season? There are fans out there making it pretty clear they do not want him, but so far no opinions on who they do want.
Just my opinion, but that in itself is a problem - fans thinking that they are entitled to a say. Fair enough those who support, and obviously help fund, a fan-owned club such as AFC Wimbledon, Exeter or Newport, but the majority of clubs are businesses and are run by the business owner(s) - I'm not so sure that any business owner would welcome the thought of allowing customers a say in the running of his business. It's bad enough having to contend with player power, so, please, no fan power. Like everyone else, they are entitled to have their opinions, but are not really entitled to expect a club to act upon them - that way lies madness.
The trouble is it's easy to say get so and so out including owners and players but when it comes to alternatives the mind come blank. People didn't want Munoz because he was too young, inexperienced and naive but with two very good managers who have had long and pretty decent careers we've done no better with the odd exception. Maybe unfortunately our squad hasn't been or isn't as good as fans thought it was - certainly consistently. Granted losing 10 in a row at home isn't great for anyone and I suspect there is more anger and discontent about the season due to that than maybe if we'd lost 6 , won 2 and drawn 2 as an example. Mind you if we'd done that then we'd be out of the bottom 3! Anyway unless the Pozzos and Duxbury do change their ways the next manager will have the same sort of structure to work under. The issue is now that doesn't seem to be working now whereas it was for so long.
Just seen who we have to playSat. I am going to give it a miss, will enjoy the mega weight fight of two of my favs instead.
I think there's two problems (1) there's no clear idea of what sort of manager we want and, related to that, what sort of football we want to play. That means we lurch from one thing to the other, and have players brought in who no longer fit (2) the chopping and changing of manager has itself become a problem, which I think is why we often have a team that seems less than the sum of its parts as players can't adapt or don't want to listen to someone who isn't perceived as having much authority. (1) is fixable with the senior management doing some hard thinking about what the club needs. (2) is harder. Of course, part of that is giving a manager a bit more time when things aren't going great, but ultimately if we're sat, say, 12th in the Championship table and playing pretty ordinary football without looking like making any challenge for the play-offs, do you keep the faith? All clubs fire managers doing badly and try to keep them when they're doing well. The only difference with Watford is that we've got rid of managers who have done well (Ivic, Jokanovic, Pearson to an extent), but two of those three sackings actually turned out to be the correct decision.
I guess the expectation will be to push for promotion again and win games obviously so again any new manager will be under pressure from the off. Like you say there is no long term planning and basically anyone coming in probably feels they have to get results in an instant so won't try to develop a team. Players probably do either drop their game if they want a manager out or get so confused about the different things said to them that they struggle and start to lose confidence. Or maybe just so used to it doesn't affect them - you'd think some of the newer players might wonder what is going on though. Josh King has gone from Eddie Howe for years to 3 managers in less than a year for example and probably 4 come the summer! I have sense a shift in reaction to the why the club is run from fans - everyone used to support the Pozzos against criticism but now the social media/online comments are quite hostile actually by Watford standards. Some people have seen us be a steady eddy in the Premier league and don't like the thought of us becoming a yo yo team or in their eyes being stuck in the Championship (hardly the end of the world personally)
I'm not so sure that Jokanovic was sacked though - he was appointed on a short term contract not long after the start of the 2014/15 season and left after refusing the terms of a new contract offer the following June. Perhaps that indicates part of the problem - the money the club has been prepared to pay a Head Coach?
The financial model worries me...can we afford to not go straight back up? If not then we may be up against it next season with IMO a residue of less talented players
Seemed to be a contract issue as you say or he had certain demands about players. In a way guess the Pozzos were right. Guess like most we will be affected by losing revenue although some might say losing a few players won’t be a bad thing!
I am not sure about their financial model, but Bournemouth have survived despite having a ground half the size of Watford. There has been an attempt to provide replacements for the better players who left after the relegation, but really they have not been good enough. Just compare Étienne Capoue with Juraj Kucka.
Rumours are that he and Big Dunc are in a spot of bother following a spot of bovver whilst in a club drinking together. Quite serious given priors, apparently.
