Watford Set To Sack Manager After Only FIVE MONTHS In Charge

Watford look set to sack head coach Paulo Pezzolano after only five months in charge at Vicarage Road, as reported by Sky Sports

The club are currently 11th in the table with 12 points, with them being reported to hire former head coach Javi Gracia.

Stagnation

Once a Premier League mainstay, Watford’s trajectory has soured into a slow, painful descent. Relegated in 2020, they went back up automatically but plummeted again in 2022, finishing 19th. Championship stability has eluded them, finishing 11th in 2023, a dismal 15th in 2024 amid yet another managerial carousel with eight coaches in five years, including Valérien Ismael’s sacking in March last year

Inconsistent recruitment has yielded a mismatched squad with an awful record of chronic injuries plaguing fitness. Not to mention revenues have dipped 13% to £57.6m in 2023/24, forcing cost cuts.

Familiar Face

Javi Gracia’s stint as Watford’s head coach reflects a mixture of both promise and struggle. Appointed in January 2018, he steadied a side experiencing issues, securing a 14th-place Premier League finish in 2017/18 and leading Watford to the 2019 FA Cup final, their best in decades, though they lost 6-0 to Manchester City. His pragmatic style suited the squad, but early 2019/20 struggles, four points from four games, saw the Spaniard sacked. His spells were a highlight of Watford’s trigger-happy ownership that undermined stability despite his tactical nous and initial success.

Poor Managerial Record

Since the time of Gracia’s first stint in Hertfordshire, Watford have amassed a worrying list of 12 managers who have failed to turn around the club’s fortunes.

Here’s all 12 and why they were dismissed from the post:

• Quique Sánchez Flores: Sacked in December 2019 after 10 games, unable to lift Watford from the relegation zone.
• Nigel Pearson: Dismissed in July 2020 despite a revival, as final losses confirmed Premier League relegation.
• Hayden Mullins: Replaced as caretaker in August 2020 after two games and relegation.
• Vladimir Ivić: Sacked in December 2020 despite a strong Championship start.
• Xisco Muñoz: Dismissed in October 2021 after seven Premier League games.
• Claudio Ranieri: Sacked in January 2022, failing to halt Premier League relegation.
• Roy Hodgson: Resigned in June 2022 after relegation to the Championship.
• Rob Edwards: Sacked in August 2022 after 11 Championship games.
• Slavisa Jokanović: Dismissed in December 2022, stuck in mid-table.
• Chris Wilder: Sacked in July 2023 after a 12th-place finish.
• Valérien Ismaël: Dismissed in March 2024, languishing in 14th.
• Tom Cleverley: Sacked in May 2025 after a 14th-place season.

Writers Views 

Javi Gracia’s return to Watford could be a shrewd move. Bluntly, he’s the best of a mediocre managerial bunch since 2019. His 2018-19 FA Cup final run proved his credentials, but the trigger-happy nature of the Pozzos’ ownership piles immediate pressure on him to deliver stability and results in a volatile Championship campaign.