(Football news) Watford have continued the trend of sacking their managers with Rob Edwards getting sacked after 11 games in charge. They appointed Slaven Bilic as their new manager who is returning to English football after agreeing an 18-month deal and should be in charge for his side’s trip to Stoke on Sunday. The former West Brom and West Ham manager has been out of work since leaving Chinese club Beijing Guoan in January.
Bilic led West Brom into the Premier League in 2020 before being fired three months into their first season back. He is set to become Watford's 10th permanent manager in the past five years. The club have acted quickly with Edwards, who was appointed the manager in May after leaving Forest Green in controversial circumstances. Bilic hopes to give them a lift after a disappointing start to the season as he attempts to recover from last season’s relegation from the Premier League.
Watford took the decision to fire Edwards because of fears they are already losing ground and their hopes of returning to the Premier League were diminishing.They are currently 10th after winning three of their first 10 games and are currently nine points below Sheffield United at the top and six behind Norwich in second place. They believe that making a change during the international break will give Bilic time to settle in as he prepares for automatic promotion.
The Watford hierarchy believe that their squad is capable of better performances and they have managed to hold on to key players such as Ismaïla Sarr and João Pedro despite interest from Premier League clubs. Edwards was given funds to improve his squad after replacing Roy Hodgson but the results haven’t been good enough. Watford owners have never been hesitant when it comes to sacking managers; they hope appointing Bilic will change that trend. He is expected to install Danilo Butorovic and Dean Racunica as part of his backroom staff.
Watford’s owner, Gino Pozzo, said: “As with all decisions taken by the board, I believe this change to be in the best interests of the club. We felt Rob had enough time to show us the identity of his team, however performances haven’t reflected our hopes and ambitions. Now we must move forward, and, in Slaven Bilic, we have secured the services of an experienced coach who has recent experience of promotion to the Premier League.”
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