Pre Season - 2020/21

Oh yeah, forgot about that.

It doesn't look like Dalby, so surely by process of elimination means it must be Max Thompson? Looks similar enough from what I can tell. Very good pace whoever it was anyway.

 

As you say, it's not Dalby. It's probablyThompson but as he makes the run someone says 'great run...' and what sounds like yute, yoof or yukes! A trialist possibly?

 

Sounds to me like it could also perhaps be Euan.

Shame the club haven't bothered to report on the match at all.

 

Suarez and Sema are training

 

Our Lord and Saviour

 

Ken Sema, Ken Sema,
Running down the wi-ing!

 

What is the deal with not wearing shin pads for training matches?
A player is a valuable asset , why take any unnecessary risks ?

 

Although not technically very gifted, a front 3 of Sema, Deeney & Success would bulldoze a few defenders. We’d never score though.

 

Success couldn't even bulldoze a call girl...

 

How many pre-season games are the others playing? Given the restrictions on what clubs can and cannot do, just like before the restart to last season, I'd imagine clubs are either keeping their pre-season plans quiet, or just doing intra-club things

 

Spurs are apparently playing 3. They are playing Ipswich right now, play us and someone else according to their fans.

I hope we have more than one pre-season game set up.

 

If Giraldi doesn't think we need preseason games then who are we to argue. We are so far ahead of everyone else technically that other teams are having friendlies today and our lot only started training at the start of the week.

#hmspisstheleague

 

I’ve never even heard of this ‘pre’ season before. Sounds like a made up word to me. All that matters is the actual season.

 

Apparently Troy got a smile out of Ivic yesterday:

https://www.watfordfc.com/news/bachmann-everyone-is-looking-sharp-already

I presume by claiming he’s a Premier a League level striker.

 

That'll mean he's first on the team sheet then.

 

Bachmann hitting all the right notes in that interview.

 

Anyone else get the feeling that they're going to completely balls this pre- season up? Got visions of players dropping like flies in the first few games due to lack of decent prep. There's got to be more than one pre-season friendly.

 

There has already been a pre season , operation re start.
2010/20 finished only a few weeks ago .
Putting players through another full "pre season" so soon after
the last one is unnecessary.

 

Hope you're right

 

Remember not long having returned from a few weeks in the states to end up rather confused, tired and battered at West Ham away trying to get that started but tailing off each time after the third line or so.

Those wonderful days in the premier league where we actually won games.

 

It certainly felt like last season was 10 years long!!!

 

They will both turn over our as we lose our first 4 games....

 

I heard he saw Troy do a bleep test.

 

Any notions I had of us doing marginally well this season are now gone. Everyone else playing pre season games whilst we seemingly have half our players training in hotel rooms whilst giving papers interviews that they are "watford till any other club gives a sniff of interest". All our rivals are adding smartly to their squads whilst we beg papa Pozzo for awful cb's, two weeks to prove me wrong but it reeks of the same arrogance that keeps costing us.

 

The lack of pre-season games is pretty bizarre.

 

I know it seems that way, when 90% of the rumour mill is negative as far as Watford are concerned, but keeping this squad together will be a huge achievement in itself. So far no one of any note has left us.

I'm sure Watford will play a couple of local non-league sides before they take on Spurs. It wasn't that long ago we played Arsenal, a month tomorrow. So it's only like an extended international break. The players are not going to lose too much in terms of fitness over such a short period of time. Vlad has had then for a couple of weeks already, and players like Suarez played until only recently so probably needs a 2/3 week break, even though he's in training now.

I see no reason why we will not be a dominant force next season, so long as we keep the majority of the quality players.

 

This has most likely already been set up. A match with Boreham Wood, St Albans or Woking. It's all a big secret so we're not allowed to know such things, but I'd be amazed if Spurs is our only game before the season kicks off. The club likes to tease its fans.

 

You'd think so but I'd expect it to leak from the other clubs' end if not ours. Crawley are playing our U23s today I see. That means the kids will have played two league sides while the first team seem to just train.

 

I think the bigger issue is that if we are banking on keeping this squad together, then fantastic - only a couple of additions and we have a wonderful team for Championship football. But if we intend on doing so, only to start losing players late on we could be in big trouble. We need to have an idea of our team and have them playing games soon - the Championship is unforgiving to complacency.

Also worth remembering despite all the wonderful stars we had in that promotion season, with a team way, way too good for the Championship - it was only the signings of Connolly, Guedioura and Watson that really got us over the line!

 

The Crawley game is on YouTube for anyone interested.

https://www.crawleytownfc.com/news/2020/august/watford/

 

Watford have had a penalty saved. A telegraphed and timid attempt easily saved.

Update. Now losing 1-0.

 

1-0 down