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Watford appoint a new head coach

Watford are looking set to appoint a new head coach in the coming days, with the individual already named according to various reports close to the club.

The Hornets have been without a full-time head coach/manager since the departure of Nigel Pearson, who was sacked back in July after a defeat away at West Ham United, yet looked to be guiding them to safety towards the end od the season.

Instead, he was axed with the club in 17th, assistants Hayden Mullins and Graham Stack took over on a caretaker basis for the final two games of the season, which then saw them drop into the relegation zone, then finish in 19th position on the final day.

Vladimir Ivic will be named as Watford’s new head coach on a two year deal, having recently left his post at Israeli football club Maccabi Tel-Aviv earlier this summer.

The Serbian coach led them to back-to-back titles and now looks to be the man to try and get the Hertfordshire outfit back to the Premier League.

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Watford are expected to return to training next week, ready for pre-season, with the side’s friendlies yet to be revealed.

It will be their first season back in the second tier in five years, with 43-year-old Ivic now looking to build on his already impressive reputation.

He led PAOK to the Greek Cup in his first season (2016–17) in charge as a manager, he then opted for Maccabi Tel-Aviv where he won consecutive league championships (2018–19, 2019–20), losing just eight games out of the 91 in which he took charge.

Watford held talks with him around a week ago before making the decision that he is the man to take the club forward having already approached Barnsley boss Gerhard Struber after he kept the club up on the last day of the Championship season. The Tykes manager would have cost the Hornets around £1.2million pounds in compensation.

EFL writer @JackCian has given fans an insight into what he is all about. He wrote that Vladimir Ivic:

• Demands exceptional levels of discipline
• Works closely with youth
• Bleeds youngsters into the first 11
• Exciting wing play
• Has only lost 2 games in 2 years
• Likes to play a 4-1-4-1, however also has a soft spot for a balanced 4-3-3.
•’Hard as nails’ according to Serbian press
• Overall, the appointment is a positive appointment one for the Hornets

A club statement is expected to be released, when is unsure, with Watford set to unveil their new kit for the 2020/21 Championship season on Thursday.

IVIC’S PLAYING CAREER:

1994–1998 – Proleter Zrenjanin – 67 games (7 goals)
1998–2004 – Partizan – 133 games (64 goals)
2004–2005 – Borussia Mönchengladbach – 4 games (1 goal)
2005–2007 – AEK Athens – 56 games (9 goals)
2007–2008 – Aris Thessaloniki – 29 games (5 goals)
2008–2012 – PAOK – 103 games (20 goals)
Total – 392 games (106 goals)

IVIC’S MANAGERIAL CAREER:

PAOK – 9 March 2016 until 10 June 2017 – 70 games, 41 wins, 12 draws, 17 defeats, 58.57 % won
Maccabi Tel Aviv – 31 May 2018 until July 2020 – 81 games, 54 wins, 20 draws, 7 defeats, 66.67 % won
Total – 151 games, 95 wins, 32 draws, 24 defeats, 62.91 % won

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