To be fair it worked for a season and then unfortunately we tried the same again and it didn't. Not sure you can blame Nani for sticking with something that worked. It seems from the signings so far we are taking a different route now
True, I appreciate your opinion too. I think the moment you really evaluate an owner is once you look back on their achievements, and the Elton era was certainly the best time of our history, but in 30 years time when the Pozzos might not be around, i think we will eventually view them in the same light as Elton and Taylor, especially in comparison to the horror shows of Simpson and Bassini
Agreed, football isn't an exact science and last season was just one of the times things didn't go to plan. There is definitely a different feel to the way rumours and links are shaping up this year and it's looking promising so far.
I must say I was flummoxed by the lack of success of Iriney, Acuna, Fabbrini. They are clearly good players but struggled to settle. Will they be given a new chance to assimilate or are they now on the scrapheap as far as we are concerned? I know Acuna has another season out on loan, and Iriney is approaching veteran stage, but surely Fabbrini could still be great for us if he settles?
Good post, but in all honesty, as much as I like the current regime, I just don't think they will ever match what happened under EJ/GT. From the depth of Division 4 to the runners up in the top tier in only 6 years. Without trying to be patronising I genuinely feel a little sorry for the younger fans that such as yourself who are hardened fans but will probably never experience the same level of excitement, amazement and genuine pride that we can look back on.
I lived through the EJ / GT years and thoroughly enjoyed the ride, but I am feeling a similar excitement about our future under "The Pozzo's" THE FUTURE IS BRIGHT THE FUTURE IS YELLOW And Italian :italian:
Totally agree. Fabbrini is a class act and was so close to being so good last season. I wish we'd stuck with him
A bit premature to be saying such a thing, don't you think? We've had two years of the Pozzos, one of which was incredibly exciting. I can imagine it'll be relatively exciting when we get to the Champions League final in 2018.
The club that became well and truly established during the John/Taylor era but was very much in need of some serious tlc. It was crumbling away with many oblivious as to how bad things actually were. Watford needed EJ & GT then, and it needs the Pozzos now. One without the other would certainly have rewritten our history and left our future in serious doubt
You can't really compare the two as they are completely different eras. Without playing down the achievement of finishing second, the gap between ourselves and Liverpool at that time, whilst massive, was a relative pittance compared with the gap between today's Watford and Man City. The Champions League and the Premier League have effectively shut the door to the top 4-6 places in the league to all but the select few who are either already in the elite club or have an injection of billions from a playboy. When the difference in revenue was between the attendance figures, we could close the gap by being more motivated, having a great clutch of players through the youth team, carefully scouting some great talent and having an inspirational manager. In today's day and age, with all our moons coming into alignment, a club of our size could hope for a top ten Premier League finish as the zenith of achievement.
Good post. And how depressing. And even worse the money has led to the likes of Aston Villa and West Ham not wanting to bother with the FA Cup for fear of being in a relegation battle. They just exist to fight for this golden 10th place. What miserable times now, as the top clubs operate massive squads, stockpile the best players, and even worse stockpile all the best youth players before loaning them out. Remember when there used to be "crack" Eastern European teams fielding 50% of their national teams? Not any more. Those players are now kicking their heels in the vast squads of the premier league.
And with regard to cash injections, if FFP is enforced then even a Man City scenario is no longer possible. What you see in the European leagues is what you get. Forever.
Me too Moog it was more of a spectacle when it was the european cup and knock out rounds all the way no round robin leagues favouring the Euro elitist fatcats!
Agree. Some will naturally compare to that era but it's an unfair yardstick and it means they are may be more likely to find fault with players/set up. What's the point of 'supporting' a football club if you don't have hope you'll achieve the unthinkable?
Good post, and that is only re-enforcing what I was trying to say. Maybe I wasn't clear enough. The sort of success we saw back then just wouldn't be possible now.
Well I did say " probably never", I havn't written off getting into Europe. The Pozzo's have said that their aim is to get their small clubs battling, and winning, against the big boys. That is what we should be striving to do.
The only benefit of the PL is you get to beat a stadium full of glory hunting canuts now and again. But then you get Sky condescending on you for the weekend. :doom:
This is the most depressing thread ever, making me question why I even like football. Then I remember it's because I can't help but just hope we can buck the trend and be successful without pumping millions into our team. I mean our starting lineup vs QPR cost us £500k (and that was just Deeney).
A few years ago our team cost less than £1mil, even without the Udinese/Granada imports. When Forsyth is a big summer signing, you know you've hit the big time.
Very intelligent guy, calm, thoughtful, comes across as extremely well grounded (not like crazy owners at cardiff, forest etc) A great exec, not at all flummoxed
I can't believe we can sign all these players and still be in budget. We used to buy league 1 players and always be losing millions!??? The certainly know what they're doing.
2009-10 revenue £11,258 M 2010-11 revenue £10,995 M 2011-12 revenue £11,184 M 2012-13 revenue £18,133 M So either the Pozzo's are financial miracle workers, or our previous owners were thieves, incompetent, or incompetent thieves. Anyway that's how....
In 2012-13 we got about £2.1m extra from playing at Wembley, as we got all of the gate receipts, and there was a new Football League television deal from that year too that saw more money for all the Championship clubs. That'll be a big part of that £7m difference.
Gino Pozzo please explain the diabolical decisions you have made 1. Not keeping Sannino. Sannino had turned around the rotten culture that had infested the club. Namely a lack of heart and willingness to die for the cause. You decided you wanted another manager as is your prerogative as owner yet now we look a spineless raggedy mob who time and time again simply do not have the stomach for a fight. 2. Firing Billy McKinlay for drawing a home game. 3. Not firing Slavisa Jokanovic tonight who quite clearly is the worst appointment of the lot you have made. It is simply beneath contempt that he could leave out Munari and Vydra for 'tactical reasons' 4. The absolutely diabolical fitness of the players. Again, Sannino had turned this around yet part of the reason for him leaving was reported as being related to not adhering to the Pozzos strict fitness rules. This season under Sannino was the only time under your tenure when we actually looked a fit squad. Now, more than ever, we have players who lack strength and are either continually tired or miss games for the most innocuous of reasons.
