And they also made it quite clear that January was an inflated panic buying window that they would generally try to avoid spending in, maybe getting loan deals in if necessary (which they did with duolefeu). And the position we are in means they were perfectly right not to panic buy anyone. The players we have are good enough to keep us in this division this season. That was the goal at the start of the season. They/we have succeeded yet again. They now have 3 years experience in this division and the last one brought in hughes, chalobah, Femenia etc so they are getting some good bodies in - let's just see what the next transfer window brings in in the summer to see where we go from here.
I understand where you are coming from, and I can't criticise you for thinking that way - but I do think you are being a little bit silly (in a fatherly way). Personally, though I'm not targeting a European place, I just don't see why losing to Liverpool at Anfield, with some good displays from a few players, should cast concerns over a run in that includes Burnley (h), Hudderfield (a), Crystal Palace (h) and Newcastle (h). To me, there wasn't an awful lot between the two teams barring up top. The Goals were good, but I really don't think they dominated us, certainly not as much as has been said, and I also believe that Gomes, for this game, would have been more effective in goal than Karnezis, who I make no complaints about. I just think Gomes is better in the situations a few of the goals came from. Some posters (I don't think I'm allowed to mention any names for fear of thread deletion), for all they clearly care about the club, frequently swing opinions round from game to game, making arguments that sound convincing (making you feel the argument is reasonable), but draw unrelated or speculative conclusions that, in many cases, can easily be cut down by the very same arguments made to justify them. I get the "after a win, we're in Europe, after a loss, we're going down" thing, but it really shouldn't be taken seriously, especially when some people almost seem to be making themselves ill with it. Forget it. We may already be safe, and if we are not, our end to the season is not going to be as tough as it was last season (which included Liverpool (h), Leicester (a), Everton (a), Chelsea (a) and Citeh (h); comparing that to this season is a little futile. What is the point of worrying about something that the evidence suggests is highly unlikely to happen? One game can change, and likely will, the opinion of most on here that doubt our chances of survival; but there will always be some who want to draw you into their own anxiety because it is not nice to be alone when you dwell in a pit of despair. Last season, some on here were worried about relegation in December, when I think we were in seventh position, and yet, despite how bad things got with injuries and barmy head coaches, we never got close (not saying it was good, but I was glad that I only got upset about performances, rather fearing the drop for over half a season). I'll worry about it if we need a win against Man U in the last game to survive.
I will be mildly concerned about our club when and if we ever lose at Darlington and go bottom of the bottom division again. Losing 5-0 at Liverpool is regrettable but hardly as dire as losing 5-0 at Carlisle, 4-1 at Stockport, 5-0 at Portsmouth, 5-0 at Blackpool, 4-1 at Cambridge, 6-2 at Reading and 5-2 at Gillingham. I can personally assure you that none of those games were much fun. None of them included a player like Salah either. As for our statuesque defence, Ken Goodeve would make Britos look like Sergio Ramos. Still what do I know? No doubt there are fans at Coventry, Blackburn, Birmingham, Wednesday, Forest and Leeds all commenting on how far they've come....
I agree with everything you say, except I can't see Darlington being promoted twice to get in the bottom division haha!
If we continue to fail to correct the obvious deficiencies in our back line window after window the manager can’t do much about it. That’s the point I was trying to make.
Think he could have at least played another defensive midfielder. It was a game that would always require strong runners, so leaving Doucoure and Capoue isolated seemed a bit naive. Wouldn't be much harm in throwing Ndong in there to see what he can do. After all this is a player the club have tracked for some time, yet he's not played a single second for us. I do worry that although Gracia has shown us he's tactically flexible, he's Flores-esque in his squad management. It's fine when your on form, but surely picking players regardless of performance will end up creating divisions
If you look closely at my post, there is actually no answer stock or otherwise as there was no question raised. My comments are on the inevitable hand-wringing, defeatist, pessimistic, "bloody hell we need to invest heavily in this squad otherwise we are going to hell and beyond" stuff that we get inundated with after most defeats. I suppose what I am trying to say (probably badly - especially to those on here that are beginning to sound like the arrogant, entitled Premier League glory-hunting top club followers - not fans - that we all used to despise), is for heaven's sake try to get our season and results into some sort of perspective. Sure we could do with better players in virtually every position - but then so could just about every other club in "our" league - even Citeh are constantly looking to improve their squad. It takes years of club building to get into the position of a Liverpool, Manchester Utd, Tottenham or Arsenal - or alternatively, hundreds of millions to become a Chelsea or Manchester City or (dare I say it) a Muff. Even those clubs like Southampton, Stoke and West Brom who most of us at the beginning of the season would have considered stable Premier League clubs are in precarious positions. Watford and the Pozzos have been together for less than 6 years and (I would say) have exceeded pretty well every Horns fans expectations in that time. We will probably never be able to become a regular top 8 side unless something drastic financially happens. I would have loved now to have been in the position I was in 30 or 40 years ago to follow the team home and away. Alas I miss most games now for health and financial reasons. But for a fortunate takeover by (so far) wise owners, we could be dribbling along in the Championship, wallowing in League 1 or going under in League 2 - perish the thought that we could have stayed several seasons in the Pub League. I guess that is my point.
Possession stats do not point to a 5-0 defeat My disapointment was that we seemingly flew the white flag straight from kick off
Gutless performance from a shower of ****s. No positives to take at all from that. Gracia looked like a clueless goblin on the sidelines. He'll do nothing whatsoever for us. I couldn't give a **** if we were losing to Bum**** United 20 years ago. We're **** now and I've just spent near on two hundred quid on less than 45 minutes of utterly gutless football.
As Vic implies, the luxury of being able to moan about a 5-0 defeat away to a side in the Champions League Quarter Finals and third in the Premiership is a thing most Watford fans for most of our history would have loved to have.
Is it? I can think of many, many more enjoyable seasons in the lower leagues than these 3 in the Premier League.
I respect some one like you, that has years and years under the belt supporting Watford. Of course if you go beyond 40 years then history would dictate Watford are well above their natural station. But if someone is talking about the defence or certain players that operate within it, it doesn't mean they are feeling entitled, spoilt, or glory hunting. It's clear to virtually everyone that the defensive players we have are probably by far the worst in the Premier League. The level they perform at is at odds with the rest of the side. The players we have to call on in midfield I would say is probably the best outside of the top 6. The strikers are ok, but the defence is the worst in the division, by quite a margin...IMO. Saying that doesn't mean I'm ungrateful at seeing the club where it is. It's more a frustration, at knowing how good we could be, only to be held back by this defensive ball and chain. Look at some of the players we have at the club. Chalobah, Doucoure, Cleverley, Richarlison, Hughes, Deulofeu, Femenia, Pererya. This are all terrific players and we have managed to sign, for low fees. Surely it's not too much to ask to sign a couple of defensive players that can play at Premier league level. This should not be beyond us. Creative players are the ones that cost the money, and we've done pretty well in this area. The stock answer is always the losing 0-3 at home to Yeovil analogy. Watford are now a progressive club, and looking backwards to what we used to be will always be detrimental to ambition. We have to look forwards and upwards always. It's the only way to achieve anything.
Just watching the Leicester-Chelsea game and seeing players like Albrighton busting a gut to get back and defend after 110 minutes of football, running to the point of exhaustion. Holebas couldn't be bothered after three minutes yesterday. Something to bear in mind the next time he gives an interview saying how much he cares about winning, and is about to explode an "anger bomb" because he just can't take losing.
Any team can have enjoyable one off seasons in the lower leagues. Like Vic I have been supporting Watford for 50 years plus so have had my share of great times in far away darkly lit corners. However it takes something else to get to the Premiership. It is tough here. Most teams are better supported and have better financial resources than we do so if anyone thinks we will have it easy and just watch great football they are in for a disappointment. Would I swap this for another season in another division - no - let's face it - eventually those days will return.
Come on, we're big time now, why should we know or care about anything that happens below the Prem? Unless of course.....
I've been supporting since the 80s but can only properly remember the 90s onwards and right now most matches are utterly awful to watch. Add to this the fact we have owners whose ambition doesn't extend beyond spending the bare minimum to stay up each season, and clearly the cups are insignificant to them too. It's ****. Do I hope we get relegated? No, of course not. But premier league life is pretty miserable.
I have to say that I enjoy being mediocre in the Premier League just as much as I did in any other league we've been mediocre in. What's all the fuss? You make that point yourself. I'm looking round for a rattle to put back in your pram but I can't find it. You know you love all this self-flagellation.
After the 6-1 last season my wallet was once bitten, twice shy, particularly as Liverpool are better this season than last. But I can understand where you are coming from (Maninblack agrees with RC for the second time ever shock!). Whilst I'm not getting upset and slagging off the defence every game, I agree it is pretty miserable on the whole and I am wondering whether or not to renew my ST next year.
I think the fuss is it's just as **** as it's ever been, but miles more expensive, miles more soulless, miles more ****s at matches, loads and loads of inevitable defeats....I guess the promised land is such a let down even after 3 years and it's disappointing.
What I worry about is that we need an entire new defence and at least one striker. All of very good quality if we want to improve What we will get is 30 Different defensive midfielders
We don't need to improve. All we need to do is do the bare minimum to stand still. That probably means a defender or two max.
Good news - The positive we can take from this is our team are so well drilled by Gracia they all think as one.
Fair dos. You always seem to be the type of fan that understands the swings and round-abouts of following a team. It's a bit like Moog or Going Down. You guys usually post, most commendably, with a level of wit and irreverence, so when you start making serious comments with the wit removed, it is difficult to filter it out from the usual funride. Maybe it should be taken to be an indicator that things are really bad at the Club. I just can't see it myself at the moment.
You can see him at the top of the second photo. He's the one that's not actually moving, unsurprisingly.
I was skiing yesterday and didn’t watch the game. I can’t even be bothered to watch the highlights. I don’t need to - I know exactly what happened. It’s down to the cruel Watford Gods. Why on earth does an abysmal excuse for a footballer, Holebas, never get injured. When most of our talented, consistent players get struck down the second they hit any sort of form.
