New Era at Vicarage Road Has That Reassuring Touch of Class

As the geniality of the Pozzo takeover becomes apparent, initial scepticism gives way to euphoric optimism…

This year has been a year of huge change and upheaval at Watford. Such change that it feels like we’ve just woken up to find somebody has completely redecorated our house. After the initial shock, bemoaning the loss of a perfectly well-decorated house and the feelings of defensiveness given that, after all, it was ours and we managed just fine, we have started to realise that, whoever was responsible probably has an MBA in Interior Design and pretty much knows that the new chandelier is going to look good once you get used to it.

For me, this is how the Pozzo revolution took place: First I hear that Sean Dyche had been sacked, the new owners had recruited an army of foreign loanees to replace our beloved home-grown talent, and an Italian dwarf who, whilst an incredibly dazzling and talented striker in his day, had already tried and failed at West Ham and clearly wouldn’t know his Sea Gulls from his Wolves! 

The new team sheet could have consisted of the Italian synchronised swimming team for all I knew of them. Even now I hear people at the ground say “I’m still getting used to the players’ names,” or “Who’s that one?” “Which one?” “The guy wearing number 879.” A slight exaggeration perhaps, but the new reign at Vicarage Road started with a flurry of activity that left many fans thinking “What are they doing to my club!?”

It was like an episode of Extreme Makeover Home Edition where the poor people are left to watch their house being destroyed by a troop of crazed d-list celebrities in a fit of self-congratulatory, self-publicising philanthropy and emotion before the frenzied, sleepless rebuild leaves behind a new castle while the family are left to sit in isolation wondering what has become of their home? Would they like the new all-singing, all-dancing snazzapad left behind? Would it be…them?

Indeed, could this new foreign fellow with his 5-3-2 formation really be trusted? Will all these loan players gel? Do they realise they are going to have to track back and are expected to make manly tackles? Aren’t they all unmitigated cheats who are out to deceive officials and roll about on the ground at the slightest contact? And of course the classic: How will they cope up in Barnsley on a cold December night? Well, maybe on the rolling about point, one or two of the new recruits may have some answering to do, but on the rest, I think we have our answers.

It took me until the second-half of the Huddersfield game away at the McAlpine Stadium to become rather excited about the season ahead. The Forestieri-fired, Messi-esque, dribble-dazzle, swan diving, favella jig and the Deeney-dozer, 'good feet for a big man', thunder hammer, jailbreak, little and large combination suddenly clicked for 45 minutes of swing jazz football that just left me wanting more.  Defensive frailties aside (we seem to have great difficulty defending crosses when Fitz Hall is not in the side) and the occasional inevitable Almuniageddon, a lot of the football this year has been a pleasure to watch and, I believe, will only continue to improve under the current stewardship.

Although we seem to have this dynamic ability to conjure something good or something disastrous from nothing at both ends of the pitch, there is also a more calming, patient aspect to our game too. For the first time I can remember, we have players who can take their time on the ball. This is where the Italian influence is most evident. As with dinner in Italy…you don’t rush. 

In previous years I have always been irritably occupying the edge of my seat, convinced with every passing second that we were about to lose possession. English players (a few exceptions aside) largely look uncomfortable with the ball at their feet and would much rather see it up in the air heading into their opponent’s half than suffer the ignominy of being tackled by another player. It would damage their precious yet fragile egos too much. 

This year, however, it is not uncommon to see players in yellow look like the ball is supposed to be at their feet, and if not, they are ready to receive the ball into their feet, no matter where they are on the pitch. There are actually players calmly knocking the ball about, on the ground, across the back line…just keeping hold of the ball. This mode has me feeling as though I am tucked up in bed with a hot water bottle safe in the knowledge that we have the ball. It is this season’s Barolo, to last season’s Carling Black Label; smooth and sophisticated versus functional and low-budget; Italian vs British even.

But the best thing about the year so far is undoubtedly the fact that this exciting progress on the pitch is being met with stability and confidence off it. The people running the club, I believe, have the best interests of the club at heart and have a realistic vision for the future. A vision that is still very much in-keeping with the things that have always made me proud of being a Watford supporter: the community work and role of the club within the town, and the development of young players. The vision is greater than that, but the fact that it encompasses those things is important. 

There is a confidence about the new regime that suggests that it is all under control, they have done it all before: in Italy, and in Spain. There is an air of inevitability that the processes are in place to take the club forward. In comparison to how the club has been treated over the past decade it is extremely reassuring. It feels like a football club ought to feel: stable off the pitch and exciting on it. 

It is as if we have been whisked off our feet by a new man. Not the man who used to stumble in drunk, start a fight then sit in front of a big screen TV they’ve just bought with your money and ignore your entire existence. No, this guy is going to take us out for country walks, pay for holidays and look after the kids. There is an air that everything is going to be alright now. And if the club continues to be run with a touch of class, then fellow Hornets fans, take heart.

For some more positive comment on the Hornet's this season, check out this article:

 
Watford Are A Good Team Get Used To It