Nigel Pearson - Manager

Are we still pretending we have a "talented", simply under-performing squad?

Last season was the exception, not the rule. We had a blistering start and then spent the back end of the season being almost as crap as we are now. We've been woeful for the vast majority of the last 18 months.

We have a couple of "talented" players, yes, but much more than that we have a s**t tonne of sub-standard, ageing cloggers, who shouldn't be anywhere near this league.

 

The extent of the fall was a bit odd, but that we experienced a noticeable drop-off isn't - it's very rare for clubs to be able to win consecutive PL and CL titles for a reason; if a team could just keep the same players as a previous successful season and expect the same level of performance again then it would happen more often. Teams that win titles often do so because they have a significant proportion of their key players playing at their peaks, and these peak years don't last indefinitely. Once a team has achieved all that it might expect to achieve as a team then it can also be difficult to have the same drive next season from a mental stand-point.

Deeney is of course an issue, but it hasn't just been him - we have ended up with too many players that had been playing out of their skins for a season or two who all crossed over their peaks at similar times and whose bodies suddenly caught up with them. In the PL teams can probably afford to accommodate one, max two, older players, or even one not especially motivated player, but too many and I think the whole team stops functioning well enough. The PL is so competitive, and margins so fine, that teams just can't afford to carry as many passengers as we have been this season.

 

I am now 67 years old. I have been following Watford since 1963. In that time I have seen a succession of good managers followed by clowns eg. Furphy ~ Kirby, Taylor ~ Bassett. Pearson is the best bet for us.
What's the alternative? Allardyce? Pardew? Some other unknown Spanish / Italian geexer?

 

Pardew could do a job.

 

Deeney and Capoue start.

Leave my football club Pearson. No backbone or tactical nous.

 

Steve Bruce

 

When you say Pearson is the best bet for us, do you mean for the remaining games? Or for next season?

Because the answer to those could be wildly different.

 

Who’s gonna play instead of Capoue? Rash challenge the other night and he’s looked off the pace - but anyone else who could play in his position hasn’t looked good in the minutes they’ve had either.

Deeney I’ll give you. I can only think Pearson is fearful of the effect that dropping the captain will have on the squad/his job prospects.

 

Firmly in the Pearson out camp having seen Deeney’s name on the teamsheet again.

Just a Giraldi/Pozzo yes man who used to be able to motivate people. Get him out, save ourselves the wages and just Giraldi pick the ******* team without the pretence that someone else has a say.

 

Doucoure alongside Hughes or Chalobah alongside Hughes with Doucoure further up the pitch. Quina?

 

******* Deeney again

Pearson is a clueless **** and I can’t wait to see the back of him

 

Quina doesn’t offer the protection that Capoue does. Neither does Doucoure. Chalobah has been miles off the pace just like Capoue.

We just don’t have another holding midfielder.

 

Do we really need two against Norwich?

 

Do we have 2 playing? Doucoure and Hughes get forward far more than Capoue. I’m not defending his form - just saying playing anyone else in his role means asking them to do things that are maybe not natural in their game.

 

According to the official site formation we do. Hughes and Capoue. Doucoure playing in an attacking midfield role. But Doucoure drops too deep so it leaves Deeney horribly isolated, which based on his form is just awful.

 

There’s nothing wrong with the formation. It’s the one that suits the players we have best. Sadly we don’t put the names in the right places. The best No.10 we have at the club is Pereyra and he can even get away with being lazy playing there given his style. But will we play him there? No chance. We have wingers at the club and still play Welbeck out there. Welbeck impressed up top the other day yet Deeney is still given a run.

We’re just not giving ourselves the best chance we can.

 

I'd have started Pereyra in the number 10 role. If he doesn't give a ****, take him off early. We have 5 subs, not just 3.

 

I hope Pearson stays and gets a chance to start a fresh season.

Whatever our recent form keeping us up from where we were would be a massive achievement...

Players coming back unfit is unlikely to be his issue but how hard they trained themselves in the break.

 

Absolutely agree. Given we needed snookers at the end of November, some of the Pearson-bashing is a little harsh

 

This. I was calling for Fat Sam before Big Nige came in. We were told he isn't really a short term man, but has bought us into a position that we have a fighting chance of survival. A proper pre season is needed to judge him correctly - So give him till October and see what he does with a transfer window and a preseaon.

Hard to throw recent games against him - The Covid break has meant a lot of teams have started crap - the standard of football since the restart has been appalling. Add Geri's injury to the mix and that hasn't helped. He was setting us up as a team to be quick on the break with the 2 wingers and without Geri we're blunt on the left, and predictable that we'll focus down the right.

 

Agreed, and something I feel many are overlooking.

90%+ of the games since the season resumed have been utter tripe. The season should have been abandoned; games have been a complete farce since it was resumed.

 

Needs to win another couple of games between now and next season, else Dux be donning his black hood

 

As far as I know nothing has been said yet about the timescale for starting the next season, when the transfer window will be open or how long a break/preseason clubs will have (let alone whether there will be things like domestic cups). So giving Pearson 'till October' might actually be quite short.

 

Copy this post and repeat for every 2nd half of the season coach we have, who presides over our April/May dismal run.

 

They were dross at the start, but they've generally improved as of the last couple of rounds of fixtures.

 

If Nigel keeps us up, it's a fantastic achievement from where we were when he took over (dead bottom!).

I like him and think he's an interesting, intelligent character. It's nice to have some fuller answers in press conferences and interviews etc than with our recent managers.

However, there have definitely been a few worrying signs - his refusal to drop Deeney, his seeming lack of a plan b, his slow subs (is this because he doesn't trust the back-up players, or another reason?).

Overall, if he keeps us up, I'd be ok with him carrying on. The worry is that it would be more of the same next season. I cannot take any more of The Talisman playing 90 minutes week in week out. Pearson needs to lobby for some serious reinforcements over the transfer window, and be brave enough to drop underperformers.

 

Obviously next sealson

 

Thank you, Garth Crookes.

 

Then why is he the best bet for us? Lots of people getting caught up in what he did for Leicester without looking at his record since leaving. It’s not very good.

You say ‘what’s the alternative?’ like there is simply no other managers that could do the job. There will be plenty. The restricting thing is the conditions we make managers work under - if we relax those, then we have a much bigger chance of getting a decent manager for the medium-to-long term. Keep those conditions and if I were a bookie, I wouldn’t even give you odds on Pearson being sacked in the next 12 months even if handed the job. It’s inevitable.

 

I think with Gerry and some decent defenders he’d do well

 

Whilst I see what your saying, the reasons you’ve listed for liking him are off-field matters while the reasons you’ve given for concern are all on-field ones - he shouldn’t be handed the job on that basis?

A concern I have is that he has basically done a mini version of what all our coaches have done so far - he’s got points on the board early and then the form drops off and fingers crossed those early points are enough to scrape over the line.

Yes, right now it’s points that matter over performances. But performances can’t be ignored - and we’ve been well well below par since the restart...even going by the general poor standard since the restart. It’s points that will keep us up - it’s performances that will mean Pearson doesn’t continue at the end of it all.

 

If we stay up. IF? And Brentford fail to gain promotion I would like to go for their manager as I've been very impressed with him.