Maybe they know something we don't! 5 players at the Euros: Costel Pantilimon (Romania), Craig Cathcart (Northern Ireland), Sebastian Prödl (Austria), Valon Behrami (Switzerland) Daniel Pudil (Czech Republic) Pantilimon and Prodl are first choice aren't they whilst in the past Behrami certainly has been a mainstay of the Swiss side. Think Cathcart and Pudli will be going as cover.
That was so they did not have to include us in the list of Premier League Clubs providing the most players
Maybe now Brunt is injured but thought they had the 2 WBA central defenders as first choice. Probably done more than enough to warrant a go though.
Somebody has suggested this could be our new kit: Must be the away one. https://pbs.twimg.com/media/Cj9XKNXXEAAVKRl.jpg
That is revolting. There are too many disconnected designs all in one place. The end of the sleeves sum it up.
http://www.watfordfc.com//news/article/160601-watford-fc-retained-released-list-3132264.aspx Ekstrand the main name leaving...
If we're going to play 3-5-2 then we'll need three more as cover. Understandable but I'm a bit sad he didn't get a six month extension to prove his fitness. I suspect that his agent has not helped.
You say that but we have kept only one of that years Academy crop. All of those let go are home grown including Mensah & Byers who I thought both had good chances of making it the the profession albeit from Championship level down. The chances of any of our actual home grown breaking through in the future is now almost nil. The route is cut off by many young imports who will block the way. I know we have moved on but it's sad that our once heralded Academy is now morphing into the moden day version as the likes of Chelsea, City etc. created.
Fair point Chris but not sure how many have been good enough anyway going by the results of the Under 21s.
Britos, Cathcart and Prödl would pick themselves. Ekstrand would be genuine competition when fit, but is now not an option. Hobson is, for now, temporary cover. Jesus, of he's with us, may not prove compatible. Leaves us a bit short of cover for that system. Short even for 4-4-2.
But that's one of the problems - our Academy was only up to u18 so to enter the u21 league has been a real issue. Look at the different seasons of the 2 teams. The point I was making was that the flood of talent from outside the area and mainly older is drowning the local talent that we have previously been bringing on. In 2 or 3 years look back and see how many of this successful u18 team are playing in the u21's or let go / frozen out.
If you couple this with the fact that we are rotating managers every season, then we will never again have a situation where managers can work with young players and then see the fruition of their work develop over a couple of seasons which imho. is the basis of all great teams. If we are going to continue in this same way ie. throwing a crop of new players in, together with a new manager, every season then it will, sooner or later, backfire on us.
