With reports that Valerien Ismael is about to be fired, FLW looks at three possible alternatives.
It may have taken till March, but it appears that the inevitable is going to occur in the EFL Championship.
According to reports on Saturday night, Watford are poised to fire their head coach again, after having given Valerien Ismael a new contract earlier this season after just a few months in command.
Watford set to fire Valerien Ismael
According to TalkSPORT, Ismael is ‘on the edge’ of being fired at Vicarage Road.
It comes after the Hornets suffered a 2-1 home defeat at the hands of Championship strugglers Huddersfield Town on Saturday afternoon.
This result condemned Watford to their fourth defeat in five league matches, and means the Hertfordshire outfit have won just two of their last 12 league outings.
As it stands, the Hornets now sit 11th in the division, and a mammoth 11 points off the play-off places.
Whilst we still await official confirmation from Watford regarding Ismael’s position, below, FLW take a look at three potential managers the club could turn to.
Given finances are not flush at Vicarage Road, and the compensation that will likely have to be paid to Ismael, presumably the Hornets will be targeting someone out of work currently.
As you might expect, options at this stage of the season are quite limited
Jon Dahl Tomasson
Watford could pursue former Blackburn Rovers manager Tomasson to replace Ismael in the Vicarage Road dugout.
The Dane recently left Ewood Park on mutual consent, but performed admirably at Blackburn in challenging circumstances.
Tomasson’s record in 75 Championship matches as Rovers manager is 30 wins, 12 draws, and 33 loses.
Most importantly, he had very little budget to work with at Blackburn and was ready to deploy young players, both of which would help him in his new role at Watford.
Gary Rowett
If Watford are sacking Ismael, it can only mean those at the club still, unrealistically in our mind, harbour a play-off hope this season.
If that’s the case, the club will need someone to come in and hit the ground running, so another name that has Championship experience and could provide a short-term fix is potentially Gary Rowett.
The 49-year-old’s most recent managerial stint was at Millwall, which came to an end earlier this season after a slow start to the campaign.
Prior to that, though, Rowett had guided the Lions to a top-10 finish in three of the last four seasons, and in the year they didn’t get into that position, the Lions finished 11th. This was all done on a modest budget.
Rowett has also previously managed at Stoke City, Derby County and Burton Albion
Scott Parker
Last but not least, Parker is another name to consider for Watford if Ismael is released.
Parker has a fantastic record in the Championship, having previously won promotion with AFC Bournemouth and Fulham; can he complete a hat-trick at Vicarage Road?
It wouldn’t happen this season, but, like the others on this list, the 43-year-old is currently unemployed, having departed Club Brugge in March of last year.
Parker has had little under a year away from the game to ponder on what went wrong in Belgium and his previous role at Bournemouth, England.
Parker might be a viable option for Watford if they want to pursue a young, long-term strategy.
Interim choice.
Of course, while Watford must explore immediate alternatives, the club also has the option of going on an interim basis until the conclusion of the season and then making a permanent appointment.
The Hornets did this last season when they hired Chris Wilder on a short-term contract and then later hired Valerien Ismael in the offseason.
With it becoming unlikely that the club will go significantly higher or lower in the table, regardless of who is in control, Gino Pozzo and company may find this fourth alternative tempting.
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