Surprise, surprise. Watford have got a new manager

Aidy Boothroyd left Watford in November 2008 having overseen 176 games in his three and a half years as manager of the club. In the seventeen seasons since his departure, however, twenty three different individuals have occupied the manager's chair - meaning that the average length of stay is just under nine months.  There have been ten changes in the last five seasons alone and some venerable names such as Claudio Ranieri, Slaven Bilic, Chris Wilder and Roy Hodgson have come and gone. Last season Tom Cleverley had the team in the top six for a while but a poor spring saw them drop away to finish 14th and he was shown the door in May.  The club's most successful manager of the last twenty years was Xisco Munoz who won them promotion to The Premier League in 2021, but even his tenure ran to only 36 games. He was sacked in the early autumn of the following season with Watford in 15th place.

So perhaps we can be forgiven a tad of ennui when we read that:

"Watford FC are thrilled to announce Paulo Pezzolano as our new Head Coach. The Uruguayan, 42, has carved out a reputation as a promotion specialist, having reached the top divisions in Spain, Brazil and Uruguay, and has a rich pedigree of working with young players and establishing a clear playing identity."

Hornets Sporting Director Gian Luca Nani is quoted as saying “We believe Paulo is the leader we need as we refocus ahead of the new season. He is fully aware of our ambitions and determination to push for promotion and embraces that challenge."

Pezzolano has a one year contract.

Owner Gino Pozzo (who also owns Udinese) has sanctioned the signings of a number of players for the new season. They include Hector Kyprianou from Peterborough and goalkeeper Nathan Baxter from Bolton but the club has also shopped abroad - bringing in Vivaldo Semedo from Udinese, Moroccan Othmane Maamma from Montpelier and £4m Nestory Irankunda from Bayern Munich. Furthermore, Caleb Wiley has arrived on loan from Chelsea and Luca Kjerrumgaard and James Abankwah have been loaned by Udinese. The latter came to Charlton in August 2023 on a season-long loan but was recalled four months later having made only two appearances. Also, so far, Watford have been able to hang on to explosive Germany under 19 star Kwadwo Baah who many fans expected to leave during this window.

There will be a great deal of interest in Nathan Jones's starting eleven selection for Saturday with probably only five or six players "guaranteed" a start.

Tactically, this weekends game will set up in a way that will become familiar over the season. Watford tend to play in a 4-3-3 formation, relying on their wingers to provide an attacking threat and pin back opposing wingbacks. Nathan Jones will back his 3 centre backs to deal with a sole striker but the whole back line will need to be on their toes. Going forward Charlton will try to pack the middle of the park and hope that Rob Apter can push forward and pull the defence wide to create space. The second striker will stretch play on the opposite flank in the hope of creating a big gap for whoever plays in the no 10 role to exploit. Watford have used a very narrow back four in pre season so the wide players will be crucial for the Addicks.

There should be a great atmosphere at The Valley with the Jimmy Seed Stand sold out and home fans still bouncing after Wembley. Every point gained this season should be valued and celebrated and there is every reason to hope that we can gain all three on Saturday. Don't forget that it is a 12.30 kick-off and that early arrival is recommended.