Does Quique Sanchez Flores deserve another season in charge at Watford?

As Watford are about to complete their first season in the Premier League without being immediately relegated, surprising questions have emerged over the future of manager Quique Sanchez Flores and whether he should continue in the dugout.  They lie 12th with a game in hand, so a top half finish is still possible and have just been edged out of a place in the FA Cup final, so why is Flores’ job at risk at all?

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The Spaniard has done remarkably well to take the runners-up of the Championship to a comfortable mid-table finish and build upon the solid foundations laid by Slavisa Jokanovic in a wonderful promotion campaign.  He has transformed the style and expectations of the club, reinventing Watford as a tireless, direct, pass and move team who have taken a few scalps this season under his guidance. Knocking out FA Cup holders Arsenal on their home turf in the quarter-finals is a high point, along with a 3-0 romp of Liverpool and the 2-0 beating of West Ham at home. 

Their first half of the season went so much better than anyone thought, it seems perspectives and objectives may have changed when the New Year began as some even pondered if Watford could
challenge for a Europa League spot.  They had racked up eight wins in 19 games as 2015 closed, but just four wins in the next 16 has seen form dip and fans float back down to reality of a coast to
mid-table.

However, is this really a bad thing?  Watford have never previously survived a Premier League season and were favourites to go down at the start of the season.  Therefore, to go through the entire term without any relative worries of relegation and never be near the relegation scrap, this has to point towards this being a good season for The Hornets.  Players like Troy Deeney, Craig Cathcart, Etienne Capoue and Odion Ighalo have proven themselves at Premier League level and the brand of football Watford fans have witnessed this campaign is some of the best seen for years in Hertfordshire. 

It would be incredibly harsh to even question dismissing Flores, never mind actually sack him, as there aren’t many managers who they could attract that would be able to do as good a job.  His pedigree includes a Europa League winner’s medal with Atlético Madrid and a good eye in the transfer market as shown with signing Capoue, Jose Manuel Jurado and Nathan Ake on loan.  With the further investment of the TV money into the Premier League, Flores can bolster his squad and improve the quality around his key players to consolidate Watford as a Premier League team.

The main problem in the second half of the season for Watford has been the dry up of goals from Deeney and Ighalo.  With 25 goals between them this season it’s an impressive tally, but the next best is Almen Abdi joint on two, so if the front two don’t score it’s hard to see where the goals will come from.  Ighalo has managed just one league goal since January, despite him notching 13 in the first half of the campaign.  Deeney has kept to a similar ratio with five goals in the second half compared to six before 2016, but the loss of the Nigerian’s form, in particular, has seen to their slump in form.  Nevertheless, with reinforcements in the summer, this problem can be solved.

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Injuries have also seen key players like Capoue, Cathcart, Jurado and Valon Behrami out for long spells during the season meaning there has been a lot of chopping and changing to a settled team.  Though still, Watford have continued to prove themselves against the Premier League regulars, a fine achievement for a team heavily doubted in its ability, attitude and ultimately results.  It says something about a manager that in half a season, the feel and expectations of the club have risen to a level the club has never reached previously, this demands respect and most definitely the security of his job.

I think Watford can build on this season to become a settled and secure Premier League team.  There has been enough improvement and encouragement when comparing Watford of last season to this season to suggest this is possible, with Flores running the show. If they sack him; which is somehow a possibility with the stories of late, it will be yet another summer where the players have to settle in with a new manager and that’s the last thing they need after the progression they have made from a turbulent promotion campaign, manager-wise more than anything else, having previously gone through four in one season. 

Appointing Flores and losing Jokanovic has proven to be a masterstroke seeing how the Spaniard has done, so keeping him and maintaining stability at Vicarage Road would be advisable.  Yet, football can be a confusing game when it comes to decision making, let’s hope Watford don’t make the wrong one.

Featured Image: All rights reserved by chao1989.