Next Watford Manager Odds

At Watford, the term 'the managers door is always open' means something a little bit different than the comforting quote to a player, it's almost literal. The next Watford manager betting market is one that we seem to be seeing more and more since Watford and Aidy Boothroyd parted ways in 2008. However, in the last 10 years, it has gotten ridiculous. Boothroyd was the last manager to last 100 games in charge of Watford and recent head coach Valerien Ismael managed the club for more than Watford's last nine managers, the worst part of that is that the French manager didn't last a full season!

With 10 managers since 2000, Watford manager betting odds are a constant. Perhaps the most baffling sacking came in the form of Xisco Munoz who led Watford to promotion in 2020 but was sacked with the club 13th in the Premier League the following season. Watford would go onto appoint Claudio Ranieri and Roy Hodgson that season and end up relegated. Xisco was sacked with Watford's highest ever win percentage from a manager.

So what hope does the next Watford manager have? A weaker squad and a chairman with loft amibtions, whoever is the next Watford manager is going to have their work cut out for them.

Who will be the next Watford manager?

For the timebeing, Tom Cleverley has taken on the role of caretaker manager - a big step-up from u-18s coach and ambassador. However, the former England midfielder has clearly impressed as he got the role at Vicarage Road. Watford are in dismal form and have only beaten Chesterfield, Rotherham and QPR in 2024, so as sackings go, Valerien Ismael's was definitely justified. The club aren't 100% safe from relegation and if Cleverley can't get the team picking up points again, they could end up in a relegation fight.

If Watford perform to a high-standard under Cleverley, the former Manchester United man may be trusted to take the club into a promotion challenge next season as their new head coach rather than interim head coach. However, the likelihood is that Watford will already have eyes on their next coach.

Chris Hughton is a name that has been linked with the next manager role at Watford after a failed spell with the Ghanian national team saw him sacked in January. Hughton is a relatively high-profile name following spells with Newcastle United, Birmingham City, Norwich City, Brighton & Hove Albion & Nottingham Forest. Would Hughton work? Probably not but it wouldn't surprise many if he was made manager.

Other names that have been linked are former Sheffield United boss - Paul Heckingbottom, former Nottingham Forest manager Steve Cooper and Frank Lampard but the one that might be the favourite for Watford fans is Carlos Carvalhal, who recently has managed at Braga, Celta Vigo and Olympiacos and has plenty of experience in English football.

Of course, for every potential candidate, there is a name in the betting market that seems odd and at this moment that is former Watford striker Troy Deeney - who was sacked from Forest Green Rovers after six games as the club failed to win a game under their new manager.

Last 10 Watford Managers

Since the sacking of Roy Hodgson, the statistics from Watford managers have all been from the Championship, it has to be questioned whether the club made mistakes with their sackings, their appointments or both. In theory, Rob Edwards and Slaven Bilic appeared like good hirings from the club. However, it could be argued that both were sacked too soon with Edwards lasting just ten Championship games and the club had spent most of the season prior in the play-offs. Then Slaven Bilic took over lost three of his first five games but recovered to take the club back into the play-offs before a defeat to Sheffield United and draw against Preston saw Bilic sacked with the club within touching distance of playing in the play-offs.

They subsequently hired Chris Wilder and fell down the division, making the campaign a failure. However, a dismal 2024 so far has seen back-to-back poor seasons for the club. It's hard to believe that a club that were just a few points off the Europa League back in 2019 would have such a decline but unfortunately, it is becoming more and more common in football.

2021/22 was Watford's last season in the top flight and they'll hope their next manager can push them closer to winning the league than dropping down to the third tier of football.