Which of Watford's summer signings have impressed you most? (From Watford Observer)

Holly68 wrote:
Throw Buckley, Graham and Marriapa in with the new boys and we'd be challenging at Top

SAHornet wrote:

Holly68 wrote:
Throw Buckley, Graham and Marriapa in with the new boys and we'd be challenging at Top

But in fairness Holly, that would be +/- 7m quid less in the clubs coffers and I would suggest that without that money we would have been in the hands of administrators long before The Pozzo takeover.

buckler wrote:
The bloke serving the Burgers in the Rous concourse is Good!

Holly68 wrote:
I predict Vydra will score 25 goals this season and score our first hat trick for a long long time. In fact who did score our last hat trick ????? (Peter Kennedy away at Southend ??).

Clues ?

Holly68 wrote:

Holly68 wrote:
I predict Vydra will score 25 goals this season and score our first hat trick for a long long time. In fact who did score our last hat trick ????? (Peter Kennedy away at Southend ??).

Clues ?

Just found answer :

Last Watford hatrick at the Vic was March 1st 1997 - Kevin Phillips v Bristol City!! 15 years and no Watford hat trick at the Vic -that's poor, come on Matej, we have waited long enough

Last Watford hattrick was when Chopra scored 4 at Burnley 5th April 2003!

9 years ago, still too long, Vydra to bang in one or two hat tricks this season

gloryhornet4 wrote:
Peter Kennedy hat-trick @ Southend?
Darren Bazeley circa Feb 1995 perhaps?

Holly68 wrote:
Peter Kennedy got a hat trick away in league cup - thought it was at Southend

Holly68 wrote:

Holly68 wrote:
Peter Kennedy got a hat trick away in league cup - thought it was at Southend

Just checked, it was Peter K v Southend away in a 4-0 win at roots hall

MJ1 wrote:
Huddersfield on Saturday away and they are on fire. Zola needs to stop the rot at the back if we are to get anything from this trip.
Watford's strength has always been to get more out of the team than the sum of its parts. But at the moment the opposite applies - lots of skill on display but poor team performance. Zola's problem is that he has too many players to select from and an expectation by the owners, Nani and the players themselves that in travelling to a foreign land they will at least get to play and develop their skills. Nani and Duxbury are now trying to reduce the size of the squad but this can only be acheived by shipping out home grown players. We can't re-loan loanees.The Academy won't even get a look in. So selection is being permanently compromised. It feels like we are still in a pre-season stage where every player gets a game to show that they should be selected for the competitive matches - but we are now 7 Championship and 2 Cup matches into the season. If we slip into the relegation zone on Saturday this will bring new pressure on Zola. Given where we are, rather than where we'd prefer to be, it is essential that Zola has core players in the team each week to give us stability and form and around which the new loanees can play.
My core would be Almunia, Doyley, Nosworthy, Hogg, Yeates, Murray and Eustace. They may not all be the most skillful in the squad but they are players who can grind out results in the English Championship.

MJ1 wrote:
Huddersfield on Saturday away and they are on fire. Zola needs to stop the rot at the back if we are to get anything from this trip.
Watford's strength has always been to get more out of the team than the sum of its parts. But at the moment the opposite applies - lots of skill on display but poor team performance. Zola's problem is that he has too many players to select from and an expectation by the owners, Nani and the players themselves that in travelling to a foreign land they will at least get to play and develop their skills. Nani and Duxbury are now trying to reduce the size of the squad but this can only be acheived by shipping out home grown players. We can't re-loan loanees.The Academy won't even get a look in. So selection is being permanently compromised. It feels like we are still in a pre-season stage where every player gets a game to show that they should be selected for the competitive matches - but we are now 7 Championship and 2 Cup matches into the season. If we slip into the relegation zone on Saturday this will bring new pressure on Zola. Given where we are, rather than where we'd prefer to be, it is essential that Zola has core players in the team each week to give us stability and form and around which the new loanees can play.
My core would be Almunia, Doyley, Nosworthy, Hogg, Yeates, Murray and Eustace. They may not all be the most skillful in the squad but they are players who can grind out results in the English Championship.

mullenswfc wrote:
Was a very good win/performance for Huddersfield last night but I believe we've got the quality to go there and win.
Would go with;
Almunia
Cassetti, Hall, Nosworthy, Pudil
Chalobah, Abdi, Yeates
Vydra, Deeney, Murray
Subs: Bond, Doyley, Neuton, Hogg, Smith, Forestieri, Beleck.
Would go Hall and Nos to deal with strength of Vaughan and Novak. Cassetti was fine defensively until formation change. Yeates link up play in midfield is worth keeping him in. That selection is on basis of who we know is fit, there's a few other players we have that could easily step in if fit.

Travelling Hornet wrote:
Can I say well done to the photographer for the photo of Vydra and Pudil at the top of this article.
The symmetry is simply stunning, from the feet , legs, angle of bodies and arms .
Couldn't of been posed any better.

laddie hornets wrote:
The hugely overweight guy who puts out the plastic cones while the players are practising hasn't put a foot wrong. Who is he? What else does he do? Does he speak English? Is he in charge of 'conditioning'?

londomollari wrote:

Travelling Hornet wrote:
Can I say well done to the photographer for the photo of Vydra and Pudil at the top of this article.
The symmetry is simply stunning, from the feet , legs, angle of bodies and arms .
Couldn't of been posed any better.

Perhaps they are hoping to be nominated for the next Olympics---Synchroni

sed diving.

The Family Cat wrote:
Noticed Barnet have signed Collins John, remember him??? Couldnt hit a barn door....

londomollari wrote:

londomollari wrote:

Travelling Hornet wrote:
Can I say well done to the photographer for the photo of Vydra and Pudil at the top of this article.
The symmetry is simply stunning, from the feet , legs, angle of bodies and arms .
Couldn't of been posed any better.

Perhaps they are hoping to be nominated for the next Olympics---Synchroni


sed diving.

Sorry, having read my comment, it could be viewed as derogatory---I didn't mean it that way!

lutondown wrote:

The Family Cat wrote:
Noticed Barnet have signed Collins John, remember him??? Couldnt hit a barn door....

Yeah Boofers paid 9k a week to Fulham to loan him, he come here injured played about eighty minutes in total. He was here 12 weeks £108k! Great manager, no wonder we went pear shaped

buckler wrote:

lutondown wrote:

The Family Cat wrote:
Noticed Barnet have signed Collins John, remember him??? Couldnt hit a barn door....

Yeah Boofers paid 9k a week to Fulham to loan him, he come here injured played about eighty minutes in total. He was here 12 weeks £108k! Great manager, no wonder we went pear shaped

He was another misfit hoof was desperate to sign ! He was warned to steer clear of him, Ellington and that defender Jackson ! Ignored all advice cos Aidy knew best and look what happened!

lutondown wrote:

The Family Cat wrote:
Noticed Barnet have signed Collins John, remember him??? Couldnt hit a barn door....

Yeah Boofers paid 9k a week to Fulham to loan him, he come here injured played about eighty minutes in total. He was here 12 weeks £108k! Great manager, no wonder we went pear shaped

edgrigg wrote:
Mate of mine supports a Premiership team he has no connection with and by 'support' I mean he has a replica top and watches them on TV. I used to laugh about this and the fact none of the team had any connection with the city they now represent. I may not live in Watford, but I come from there and I regularly go and see the Golden Boys; when I do I never boo them but always sing 'Watford Till I Die'. I point out how many local kids got into the Watford team and how many supported the team as kids. My mate said if a rich foreign owner came in, bought the club and filled it with players from overseas I wouldn't complain if they started winning. He is wrong, even if we win every cup going it would not feel right. This team is looking less and less like a real Watford team. The Pozzo's have just bought a brand name. For the first time in my life it no longer feels like 'my' club. Watford till I die? Might as well support Italy. This is very sad and however says we should be realistic and this is the reality of modern football then I say you can keep it. I want Watford back. There is a reason club names are the same as towns and cities across England, they are meant to be the local community's team.

edgrigg wrote:
In the last few years we've had kids from Hemel and London and Watford in the team. And I think it makes a lot of difference if they have at least heard of the town before joining. The thing is we aren't being successful. If I was given the choice of a team full of forgein players winning the Premiership or a team with a good scatter of local lads in League One I would take the latter any day.

londomollari wrote:

MJ1 wrote:
Huddersfield on Saturday away and they are on fire. Zola needs to stop the rot at the back if we are to get anything from this trip.
Watford's strength has always been to get more out of the team than the sum of its parts. But at the moment the opposite applies - lots of skill on display but poor team performance. Zola's problem is that he has too many players to select from and an expectation by the owners, Nani and the players themselves that in travelling to a foreign land they will at least get to play and develop their skills. Nani and Duxbury are now trying to reduce the size of the squad but this can only be acheived by shipping out home grown players. We can't re-loan loanees.The Academy won't even get a look in. So selection is being permanently compromised. It feels like we are still in a pre-season stage where every player gets a game to show that they should be selected for the competitive matches - but we are now 7 Championship and 2 Cup matches into the season. If we slip into the relegation zone on Saturday this will bring new pressure on Zola. Given where we are, rather than where we'd prefer to be, it is essential that Zola has core players in the team each week to give us stability and form and around which the new loanees can play.
My core would be Almunia, Doyley, Nosworthy, Hogg, Yeates, Murray and Eustace. They may not all be the most skillful in the squad but they are players who can grind out results in the English Championship.

Agreed with the above. Someone (Nani?) on Watfords staff should have insisted on taking fewer loanees.

edgrigg wrote:
In the last few years we've had kids from Hemel and London and Watford in the team. And I think it makes a lot of difference if they have at least heard of the town before joining. The thing is we aren't being successful. If I was given the choice of a team full of forgein players winning the Premiership or a team with a good scatter of local lads in League One I would take the latter any day.

SAHornet wrote:

edgrigg wrote:
In the last few years we've had kids from Hemel and London and Watford in the team. And I think it makes a lot of difference if they have at least heard of the town before joining. The thing is we aren't being successful. If I was given the choice of a team full of forgein players winning the Premiership or a team with a good scatter of local lads in League One I would take the latter any day.

It really is time to choose then edgrigg - Watford and success or somewhere else and dross. Free country/your choice. We need positive supporters for our FUTURE not negativity and constant diatribes about our glorious local past which, in reality, was only glorious on one or two fleeting moments in history.

bushey tales wrote:
'Our history was glorious only on one or two fleeting moments in the past' Spoken like a man who almost certainly wasn't at Darlington to see us go bottom of Division 4, or at the home game with West Brom six years later when we went top of Division 1. Enjoy your Pozzo love-in pal. These crowds look like you'll have plenty of room to stretch out. Oh and by the way, 30 years ago today wasn't too bad either!

Only 2 Ross Jenkins wrote:
For people to say they'd like a team of locals (or at least reasonably local) is a little shortsighted I think.
It sounds to me as if some people are longing for a bygone era when there were very few foreigners playing in England. But if that was the case, they wouldn't have embraced the likes of Blissett, Barnes, Lohman, Neilson, Helguson and countless others since.

Not many of the best team we ever had (1982/3) were local, and they had no affinity with Watford before they joined. They were just professional footballers who happened to be good and within our wage structure at the time, and in fact I am sure they'd all admit to supporting other teams if they were pushed on the subject.
It's wrong to assume that a person who is from the local area would have any greater desire to do well than someone who is from the Czech Republic, for example.
The choice is either embracing the change, or dropping down 2 or 3 leagues, where you can get your fill of local lads.

bushey tales wrote:
'Our history was glorious only on one or two fleeting moments in the past' Spoken like a man who almost certainly wasn't at Darlington to see us go bottom of Division 4, or at the home game with West Brom six years later when we went top of Division 1. Enjoy your Pozzo love-in pal. These crowds look like you'll have plenty of room to stretch out. Oh and by the way, 30 years ago today wasn't too bad either!

endean2 wrote:

MJ1 wrote:
Huddersfield on Saturday away and they are on fire. Zola needs to stop the rot at the back if we are to get anything from this trip.
Watford's strength has always been to get more out of the team than the sum of its parts. But at the moment the opposite applies - lots of skill on display but poor team performance. Zola's problem is that he has too many players to select from and an expectation by the owners, Nani and the players themselves that in travelling to a foreign land they will at least get to play and develop their skills. Nani and Duxbury are now trying to reduce the size of the squad but this can only be acheived by shipping out home grown players. We can't re-loan loanees.The Academy won't even get a look in. So selection is being permanently compromised. It feels like we are still in a pre-season stage where every player gets a game to show that they should be selected for the competitive matches - but we are now 7 Championship and 2 Cup matches into the season. If we slip into the relegation zone on Saturday this will bring new pressure on Zola. Given where we are, rather than where we'd prefer to be, it is essential that Zola has core players in the team each week to give us stability and form and around which the new loanees can play.
My core would be Almunia, Doyley, Nosworthy, Hogg, Yeates, Murray and Eustace. They may not all be the most skillful in the squad but they are players who can grind out results in the English Championship.

good post there,I would agree with all those comments,take note Zola.

londomollari wrote:
If you don't know, read the Martin Samuel article in the Daily Mail today, about Watford. Many of us will violently disagree, many of us will approve, but it is an eloquent (if possibly incorrect) criticism of Watford, the Pozzos and the current loan policy, and does reflect the feelings of many in football outside Watford. It does express my own doubts about Nani/Duxbury, tho'----.

@ChrisBottom16 wrote:

endean2 wrote:

MJ1 wrote: Huddersfield on Saturday away and they are on fire. Zola needs to stop the rot at the back if we are to get anything from this trip. Watford's strength has always been to get more out of the team than the sum of its parts. But at the moment the opposite applies - lots of skill on display but poor team performance. Zola's problem is that he has too many players to select from and an expectation by the owners, Nani and the players themselves that in travelling to a foreign land they will at least get to play and develop their skills. Nani and Duxbury are now trying to reduce the size of the squad but this can only be acheived by shipping out home grown players. We can't re-loan loanees.The Academy won't even get a look in. So selection is being permanently compromised. It feels like we are still in a pre-season stage where every player gets a game to show that they should be selected for the competitive matches - but we are now 7 Championship and 2 Cup matches into the season. If we slip into the relegation zone on Saturday this will bring new pressure on Zola. Given where we are, rather than where we'd prefer to be, it is essential that Zola has core players in the team each week to give us stability and form and around which the new loanees can play. My core would be Almunia, Doyley, Nosworthy, Hogg, Yeates, Murray and Eustace. They may not all be the most skillful in the squad but they are players who can grind out results in the English Championship.

good post there,I would agree with all those comments,take note Zola.

Apart from the fact Eustace is near finished with this back injury. Hogg has been worfull this season and appears to be in a sulk. Murray has completely lost his head and Yeates has one good game every full moon. Stop filling these pages with drivel.

llloydwithathirdl wrote:
The idea of a "local" player bleeding yellow is an utter nonsense.

Look at Sordell, local, at the club his whole teenage life, goes at the first sniff of a move.

These new players look potentially miles better than the ones we had. They try just as hard, if anything harder. They are certainly more entertaining to watch.

Only 2 Ross Jenkins wrote:

londomollari wrote:
If you don't know, read the Martin Samuel article in the Daily Mail today, about Watford. Many of us will violently disagree, many of us will approve, but it is an eloquent (if possibly incorrect) criticism of Watford, the Pozzos and the current loan policy, and does reflect the feelings of many in football outside Watford. It does express my own doubts about Nani/Duxbury, tho'----.

The Martin Samuel article seems a little racist to me. Also, he claims all our players are loans - how does a player signing for 1 year permanently differ to signing a player for 1 year on loan, in reality? Apparently Samuel is a Hammer...!

lutondown wrote:

SAHornet wrote:

edgrigg wrote:
In the last few years we've had kids from Hemel and London and Watford in the team. And I think it makes a lot of difference if they have at least heard of the town before joining. The thing is we aren't being successful. If I was given the choice of a team full of forgein players winning the Premiership or a team with a good scatter of local lads in League One I would take the latter any day.

It really is time to choose then edgrigg - Watford and success or somewhere else and dross. Free country/your choice. We need positive supporters for our FUTURE not negativity and constant diatribes about our glorious local past which, in reality, was only glorious on one or two fleeting moments in history.

Still missed by the tweeting horns ;-)

bushey tales wrote:
'Our history was glorious only on one or two fleeting moments in the past' Spoken like a man who almost certainly wasn't at Darlington to see us go bottom of Division 4, or at the home game with West Brom six years later when we went top of Division 1. Enjoy your Pozzo love-in pal. These crowds look like you'll have plenty of room to stretch out. Oh and by the way, 30 years ago today wasn't too bad either!