Ok, he didn't win and even Zola picked up draws when the team went away, but a point at Ipswich is not to be sniffed at, especially after Watford fell behind to a late penalty: it takes spirit to come back from a blow like that.
Still more impressive was the diplomacy of the Italian in his post match press conference as he steered a middle course between respect for Zola and making it sound as if everything is in place for an immediate turn around in form.
According to Sannino, Zola did "an amazing job" - which might have been a tad too generous had the words "LAST SEASON" not been added!
Sannino is delighted to have traded unemployment in Italy for a well paid job in England, claiming it was something "that I was always dreaming about", which makes you wonder how many jobs he has applied for in England in the past. And who can blame him, because who wouldn't trade Tuscany for Watford?
Tactically, Watford were "good" - so it must have been part of the plan to give the opposition 58% of the possession - but there's "still a lot of work to be done", as you might expect given "this was Zola's team". And as Sannino says, he's no magician, unlike Steve McClaren who first whipped QPR into shape and who is now leading Derby in a charge up the table. But he was never in the running for the Watford job because he's not Italian!
Mind you Sannino needs to take care after announcing "I was able to show my passion on the touchline" - somebody should tell him that you can get arrested for that sort of thing in England. Keep it zipped up Giuseppe!
This piece is brilliant! You're like an amateur Adrian Durham, deliberately trying to be controversial with nonsensical rants to get your blog more hits. The first two paragraphs are reasonable but after that the tone changes into a sneering attack on Watford and their new unknown manager. I'm guessing that the reference to swapping Tuscany for Watford is meant to imply that Watford isn't a particularly nice place to live. Well, it's a hell of lot nicer than the area around your beloved West Ham! I don't understand your point about possession - Barcelona had 54% possession over two games but lost 7-0 to Bayern Munich! I don't think anyone cares that Ipswich had 58% possession other than you. Bearing in mind the defensive frailty we have experienced recently under Zola this was a marked improvement.
ReplyDeleteThe truth is that no-one knows whether or not Sannino will be a success and his appointment has been greeted with caution by most Watford fans but we will give him our full support and hope that he is able to reproduce the managerial form in Italy that has led to several promotions in their lower leagues. Thanks for your interest in our club! Good luck avoiding relegation and living the dream of seeing the Academy of Football turned into another classic Allardyce long ball team.
Smile. That's what we try to do, smile. Sneering, mois? Not at all, just having a laugh.
DeleteI've not read this, but I know it will be another boring wind up attack on Watford.
ReplyDeleteLooking forward to seeing thousands of empty seats in a half empty Olympic Stadium as West Ham tumble down the leagues .... how's Andy Carroll doing these days ? Shrewd move that one.
ReplyDeleteYou really have serious issues taking up your Saturday night writing about Watford ... what's the matter ... your box of Kleenex run out and mum caught you watching Babe Station again ???
Hammersfan
ReplyDeleteI salute your sarcasm and wind up ability. Two of the things that make following football in this country pretty fun (most of the time).
Enjoyed watching Collins on MOTD last night.
A watford fan