Watford Fc 4-1 Preston North End - 28/11/2020

Most of us will agree that this was probably our best performance so far this season, but what many of us don't agree on is the performance of Vlad.

Many of you seem to have forgotten how well Vlad and the team did during the period up to the final closure of the transfer window with a basically scratch squad. Personally I think Vlad did amazing job over that period, admittedly maybe not with great style, but the team was very effective all the same.

In fact I think he is still doing an decent job because he is still having to deal with a lot of player injury problems etc. Again the way he has had the team playing has been a little frustrating at times, but the team has still only lost twice and we are sitting 3rd in the table.

So I have to ask why so many of you are calling for him to be sacked, it does not make a lot of sense to me. OK we possibly could be playing with a bit more style and panache, but we are still getting pretty good results overall. I think Vlad deserves a lot more backing than many of you are giving him, and I'm prepared to give him my full backing.

Talk of sacking him is nonsense as far as I am concerned, he does not deserve the slating that many of you are giving him at present, just because his teams style of play can be frustrating at times. I would love to see free flowing entertaining football all the time, but that is not all that wins titles, it's the hard fought scrappy ground out wins that do it too, and I for one think that Vlad will lead us back to the PL, be it by hook or by crook.

 

I don't think the disagreement is about whether our performances have been good or bad, as I think most of us would agree that the performances have not been good.

The disagreement is that;
One group on here think that we are not capable of putting in good performances and no chance of promotion as we just aren't good enough now and can't see their potential, and/or hate the players, the coach, the club and the owners.

Whereas the "opposing" group (me included) think we are certainly capable of good performances and promotion and/or don't feel the hatred for the players, the coach, the club or the owners, even if they have reservations about all of them.

We will see who was right and wrong about promotion at the end of the season. But I reckon that even promotion wouldn't stem the bile being hurled at the players, coach, club or owners.

In the meantime, the first group are working out how to post after a good performance as they don't actually want good results as they, and promotion, may delay the departure of Ivic and the owners. Whilst the opposing group are trying not to gloat in a little bit of glory as it could all go wrong again in the next match.

You also have a third group (a subsidiary of the first group) who just dislike everything about the club and will criticise everything they do, every player they have, etc, and don't care one jot how daft they look.

 

Evidence free stuff. Feel free to point out the posts on here where people are disappointed that we won and played so well. Please let us know the posters who you think don’t actually want us to go up?

I doubt you can, because you’ve just made it up.

My personal view as a poster who you clearly want to have a dig at: Great result and it looks like Ivic has finally ditched his negative 3 CBs. If bodes well and I hope Ivic pushes on from here. Due to the mismanagement of our owners I not only am desperate for us to go up, but I think it’s essential to repair the financial damage. Hopefully we can put in a good performance on the road next up to get momentum going.

 

Yep, if we don't go up this season we turn into QPR.

I just hope Ivic has us playing the same way in midweek and realises there is no need at all for us to play so defensively.

His expectations should be for us to win, and win well, in every single home and away match. Including at Bournemouth and Norwich. It's a one - off scenario that we will probably never find ourselves in again. Ivic needs to realise the gift he's been given, and fast. Starting at forest.

If he reverts to type, then I want him out. We haven't got time for him to slowly realise the league is complete trash and we are ace.

 

I'm not having a go, I'm just stating my opinion on how I see things.
I'm not making it personal, if I am right, then they will know who they are. But some have already admitted as much on here, and others make it clear by the manner of their reactions to our goals and our wins, even if they don't admit it openly, and they may not even admit it to themselves.

You say that I am making things up and "clearly" having a go at you, then where is your evidence that I'm aiming at you?

 

I think we are good enough to smash this league with a record points haul, but might not if we carry on playing anti football...

.. and I hate Andre Gray.

#CoG

 

Deeney was massive yesterday. The assist for Chalobah would have been lauded nationally if Gareth Bale did it and he was instrumental in making our play have some end product.

Football is never static. Two months back most of us were keen to see him go. Suddenly he looks pivotal and there could be outrage if he leaves in January on a free. If he stays it will be ironic if Billy big mouth bolloks is instrumental in promotion.

 

I already hate us. Not sure how a handsome purveyor of exciting football as our coach would make that worse.

 

Nah. I carefully qualified my response.

I'm a pro bedwetter. I know when to hold 'em, when to fold 'em, when to double down and say I told you so and when to just release all sphincters simultaneously and let it gush over the metaphorical bed.

 

I thought Dan Phillips did well in the short time he was on the field.
Kept the ball moving ( mostly forwards) and never gave it away.
Also would replace Chalobah with Wilmot for the Forest game to see what he gives us as a holding midfielder .
Despite his great goal yesterday, Chalobah was still awful

 

Seems a bit disingenuous to completely ignore a fourth group - those who also don’t fly off the deep end but are concerned (yesterday’s game not withstanding) about the compatibility of the manager for this league and the dour nature of our play, especially away from home. I think there’s a popular misconception that anyone who dares point out the above MUST want the manger gone, Gino gone etc etc and they aren’t given the leeway that you afford yourself for being of a slightly more positive disposition.

And I don’t know what thread you’re reading if you think there’s been no idiotic gloating happening! All the post-gone positivity was making good reading until that came along - and it wasn’t started by the negative camp.

 

I think Chalobah gets a bit of a raw deal from fans at the moment. He’s clearly not the midfield ‘quarterback’ type player that we expected he would be before his injury or a silky box-to-box type. I still think he’s feeling his way back into things when he has the ball at his feet and is often caught in possession - I hope that returns.

But when he was first coming back from injury, we all noted how he looked like he couldn’t trust his knee and shirked things - well he’s at least getting stuck in now and is doing a job he’s not really done before...seems to me he’s being asked to be the one who shields the defence and breaks up play. I think he’s doing that adequately even if others facets to his game haven’t quite caught up to speed still.

What’s more, he has to play in Capoue’s absence (I’d also say he’s been no worse than Capoue since he returned!)...a midfield 3 of Wilmot, Garner and Quina is far too lightweight and inexperienced with little ball-winning/tackling ability.

 

I rarely, if ever, see criticism of the groups I mentioned by any, so called, fourth group. They all seem to unite and one happy lovefest on both here and the shoutbox.

But, and I have said it several times, the Shoutbox has got quite a better better recently in my opinion.

But you are right, there is some gloating when they win, but personally I find that less objectionable and more understandable than the gloating we see after a loss. If a bit of gloating after a win bothers you, then I question which group you are in.

 

I’m strongly anti Pozzo so presume I fall in your near binary buckets.

 

Guess there's a lot of bedsheets needing changing this morning.

 

Feeling number one - joy - 4-1 win and 3rd in the league!

Feeling number two - disappointment- of course this was one of just two games I haven’t watched this season!

Feeling number three - annoyance - wanted to read this thread to hear about the game and people’s thoughts on performance but yet again pages of ‘bedwetters’ v ‘happy clapper’ ********. Any chance you lot can start to wind this one up?

 

It doesn’t bother me. I just find it weird. I don’t see anyone gloating when we lose - very few maybe revel in what they perceive would be the knock on effects of a defeat (manager sacked, another chance to have a go at the owner) but I see no one happy that we’ve actually lost a game of football. Yet it’s a strange accusation that still gets thrown around.

Coming on after a decent win, when everyone was United about how well we played, and giving it ‘haha, wetters must be furious!’ is ridiculous and needlessly divisive.

 

I think Hughes was wandering around with the trainers at the match, so I don't think he has Covid. But this injury of his is starting to worry me a bit.

 

Uninterested.

 

If we have played 14 games, then we must have played 13 games.

 

A lot of the BW mandate seems to be that we should be walking the league and turning in stellar performances week in week out, starting from game one, and when we don’t they chuck their Tenna ladies out of the bed. Yet a lot of the BWs also don’t rate any of our players and think they’re all rubbish. I think this is what confuses the clappers, if anything, considering their doom and gloom view of the club, you’d expect them to be the group more surprised and pleased that we’re actually second, have only lost two games, etc etc.

 

Worrying if true

 

It's metaphorical?

 

Do ‘a lot’ of the so called bedwetters think all that? I think a couple do, at best.

I think there’s a huge amount of fans in the middle ground - some slightly more positive, others a bit more negative - and they all have varying ideas of what landed us here and how we get out of it. But they want what’s best for the club they support, even if they disagree in how that would be achieved. They debate with good humour and grace 99% of the time.

And then you get a few more ‘extreme’ views on the fringes of that (on both sides). Some who will criticise everything and some who will defend the club over everything with their fingers in their ears. And it’s when these groups clash on here, that those in the middle invariably fall behind their more negative or positive fellow posters.

I just didn’t get the need for a couple of posters to try and spark division or arguments after the game yesterday. Beyond pointless.

I’ll leave it at that! As I’m happy we won and played well so long may that continue!

 

I thought Chalobah was decent yesterday, as was Kiko and Deeney.

 

We are Watford not Liverpool. Lower your expectations a bit and enjoy the 3 points when they come. Cant remember the last time we played free flowing every week, may have been in the Zola days, but not certain. As regards to bigging up the squad, many on the forum were peeved off with the transfer window acquisitions and wanted the owners out.

 

Ah the popular misconception that anyone at all on here expects free-flowing football every game returns...

No one has demanded that. No one expects that. But some do expect us to play more exciting (yesterday) than not (Wycombe, Bristol City, Barnsley, QPR....). Get that ratio sorted and everyone will be accepting of when a poor performance or 2 comes along.

 

Now I'm worrying that I've worried you. And on a Sunday morning as well.
But it's a true fact. We've also played 12 games, 11, 10 and so on.

 

And bl**dy uncomfortable, too, by the sounds of it.

 

Chalobah has not been without fault this season at all, but in a purely defensive role breaking up play he's generally done well this season. Liking the look of him and Garner together, Garner has been quite up and down, but it looks like he's starting to really get to grips with the Championship and has flourished of late. Shame Garner didn't even come off the bench against QPR as I'm not sure Chalobah and Capoue really works--will also be interesting to see how Cleverley and in particular Hughes and Capoue fit in when they are available again

 

I don't mind less exciting games. Its Watford and I expect some. So expectations are managed. I even said "that was horrible to watch" under my breath once, but if its 3 points I don't worry or moan about it too much and move on to the next one and praise Ivic and the team for getting the win. If its 1 point and 0 points I will make some observations if need be. Maybe its them positive genes at work. Chin up lads (and lasses)

 

Have to say, I'm a bit worried about Hughes. Been kept out so far by apparent niggling injuries that keep occurring (hope I'm being overly sceptical) and we are creeping up to January with him barely having kicked a ball...if we are still in a bit of financial trouble, or need to sell before we can buy, I'm not convinced that Ivic or the club might not see him as a sellable asset.

 

Which is all 100% fair enough and well put. Which is why I was confused about you suggesting others are expecting us to play brilliantly all the time - when no one does.