STUNG BY HORNETS
If nothing else last season, Watford made a nonsense of the notion that the FA Cup is a tournament that teams such as Watford should make a decent effort to win. While other mid-ranking Premier League sides in no danger of relegation and with little else to play for fell by the wayside with barely a whimper, Hornets fans were kept buzzing as their likeable manager Javier Gracia masterminded victories over Woking, Newcastle, QPR, Crystal Palace and Wolves to set up a Wembley showdown against Manchester City. For only the second time in their history they had reached the final of the grand old competition and the denizens of a large, fairly unremarkable town in Hertfordshire dared to dream.
The fools. While The Fiver has no wish to pick at still fresh scars by poring over the excruciating minutiae of what happened next, Watford have yet to recover from the torment and humiliation visited upon them on that fateful May afternoon. Having got just a point on the board from 12 available so far in this league campaign, poor old Javier was released from his duties over the weekend as it was felt he had lost focus and was no longer able to motivate the troops. Accordingly, the club’s owners have replaced him with Quique Sánchez Flores, a man previously hired to good effect by Watford until he was released from his duties as it was felt he had lost focus and was no longer able to motivate the troops.
“After the unexpected announcement about the termination of my contract after only four matches, I want to express my surprise after competing [in] the best season in Watford’s history,” said Gracia in a dignified statement possibly written on the back of the envelope in which he’d received his P45. “I respect this decision and I’d like to reassure [fans of] the excellent relationship I have with [owners] Gino Pozzo and Filippo Giradi, and it is not going to change despite my abrupt exit of the club.”
Perhaps hoping nobody among their support would notice the rotation of personnel in the technical area when they welcome Arsenal to Vicarage Road next weekend, Watford attempted to bury news of Gracia’s dismissal during England’s win over Bulgaria on Saturday, before announcing the reappointment of Flores later in the same game. “The club and me don’t have the same point of view about the season,” said Gracia soon afterwards, or was it Flores in 2016? “But I felt completely happy with this year and I have enjoyed this experience,” one or the other of them continued, as a dejected Billy McKinlay hoved into view astride his moose on the club’s bespoke managerial merry-go-round. “I only got two matches,” he muttered. “Why didn’t they reappoint me?”
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QUOTE OF THE DAY
“It is extremely difficult to play against teams like the Faroe Islands, with 11 players in the area” – Spain boss Roberto Moreno on why the world’s 108th best team might just be international football’s Pulis-era Stoke.
FIVER LETTERS
“Re: Ox’s comments about watching England in a pub: ‘Just seeing what they were doing and what that created around me I was like: oh my God, do I really do that?’ Yes Ox, you really do ‘do that’ and that is why we are not hugely successful. We need something different please” – James Boyle.
“Re: Friday’s bob about Garry Monk; was I the only Fiver reader to check out what 20.83% of Championship clubs was and be impressed to discover that The Fiver had done some real work rather than just making up a number? Perhaps this explains why my email arrived at 5:02pm, when any self-respecting footy journo should have been enjoying his third Tin down at the Elephant & Raspberry. Keep up the good work!” – Alan Butterfield (and no others).
“Time is elastic, and more subjective than you might think. It seems only yesterday that an on-loan Jermaine Defoe ripped up the record books at Bournemouth, a fresh-faced Joey Barton lost his shirt and couldn’t get on for his debut, and a young Jonathan Woodgate managed to jog steadily through Leeds without knacking himself for eight months. All these times have passed, but on the other hand, I’m sure Martyn Waghorn has been 29 years old and diligently leading the line in some second tier of football for as long as I can recall” – Jon Millard.
“Dexter O’Riordan may think that covering a pitch in a forest is an effective way to STOP FOOTBALL but let me tell him that as a seasoned veteran of the Derby Taverner’s League I’ve played on similar and indeed worse. One pitch I remember in particular, at Markeaton Park, had a huge oak tree on the right wing/left back position, and a metal manhole cover that was at least painted green for aesthetic reasons” – Jordan Glossop.
Send your letters to [email protected]. And you can always tweet The Fiver via @guardian_sport. We have prizes today! Today’s winner of John Nicholson’s new book Can We Have Our Ball Back? is … James Boyle.
RECOMMENDED LISTENING
Football Weekly is right here. Meanwhile, the live shows are heading to Manchester and Leeds, though the latter is now sold out.
NEWS, BITS AND BOBS
David de Gea is this close to writing David de Gea on a new contract at Manchester United.
Former England Women manager Mark Sampson has been handed the caretaker’s broom handle at Stevenage “until further notice” after the League Two side flung Dino Maamria through the door marked Do One.
England boss Gareth Southgate has asked Marcus Rashford to use his speed more effectively and “to spend less time dropping back”, which sounds like the Berbatov approach to football.
Diego Maradona put his creaking knees at risk of collapse as he sang “The one who doesn’t jump is English” as he was unveiled as Gimnasia manager at an open training session.
Bolton defender Joe Bunney broke ribs and a collarbone in a road accident at the weekend, the club have confirmed. Bunney joined the Trotters last Monday.
Danny Drinkwater has returned to Burnley for talks with Sean Dyche after suffering injuries when out on the tiles in Manchester last weekend. The Chelsea loanee sustained a black eye, swollen forehead, bruised shoulders and arms, cut cheek and torn ankle ligaments after an altercation outside a trendy nightspot.
And in a painful snub for Martin from Wakefield, Danny Cowley has been appointed as the manager of Huddersfield Town, leaving Lincoln to do so and hauling his brother, Nicky, along with him.
STILL WANT MORE?
Phil Neville must understand that actions speak louder than words, writes Barry Glendenning of Bury’s busy answer to David Brent.
Newcomers Manchester United and Spurs both impressed despite losing on the opening round of the Women’s Super League. That and much more in Rachel Brown-Finnis’s talking points from the weekend.
Racism is deep-rooted among far-right fans in Italy, as Romelu Lukaku discovered when Inter supporters defended Cagliari abuse, writes Nicky Bandini.
Choosing to stage Euro 2020 in 12 countries amid a climate emergency is a decision lacking in common sense, writes Louise Taylor.
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