Reports coming out of England have confirmed that Watford has parted ways with manager Marco Silva. The Hornets have moved swiftly and have appointed Javi Gracia as his successor. Gracia’s first assignment as Watford manager will be as early as this Saturday against Southampton in the FA Cup.
Watford’s decision to sack Marco Silva comes as little surprise given his commitment issues at the club which resulted in their poor form of late. Reports had come out about Silva’s head being turned ever since rumours surfaced linking him with the managerial job at Everton.
The trigger-happy owners at Watford were never going to be on agreeable terms with Silva’s floating concentration and made little flinches in appointing their tenth manager in under six years by bringing Gracia on board. This was the club statement explaining the Hornets decision to part ways with Silva.
“The club is convinced the appointment of Silva was the right one and had it not been for the unwarranted approach by a Premier League rival for his services we would have continued to prosper under his leadership.”
“The catalyst for this decision is that unwarranted approach, something which the board believes has seen a significant deterioration in both focus and results to the point where the long-term future of Watford has been jeopardised. For the security and success of the football club, the board believes it has to make a change.”
Silva’s departure leaves the club with a lot to prove especially since the Portuguese had done a decent job in his short spell at the Hornets. He assembled a decent squad which has the potential to stay up in the league but given the fact that the Hornets has just won one match in the league since the end of November, Gracia will have a job on his hands to recharge the sinking team.
Watford’s brightest prospect Richarlison had started the season in fine form but the summer signing has slowed down since November. One of Gracia’s most important tasks will be to reinstate the confidence of the flashy winger as the 20-year-old is the focal point of the Hornet’s attack this season.
Another aspect which Gracia will have to look into would be the issue of the goals conceded at Watford. The Hornets have conceded the second most number of goals and their defence has clearly been substandard. With the board assuring him that funds will be made available for new players, the Spaniard will look to invest the money in reshuffling his defence and stabilizing the shaky backline.
A winter of great complication has come to an end at Watford with the new manager now in charge and the Hornets will be looking to Gracia to deliver sooner rather than later to prove that their call to sack the talented Silva was the right one.
