If Slavisa Jokanovic arrived at Vicarage Road with a reputation as a winner then his replacement, Spaniard Quique Sanchez Flores, joins the Hornets with an even greater pedigree.

The 50-year-old’s appointment as head coach was confirmed on Friday and the Madrid-born boss pitches up in Hertfordshire with an impressive CV.

His Serbian predecessor departs having added Championship promotion to a list of endorsements which include the Serbian SuperLiga, Serbian Cup and Thai Premier League but Flores’ piece de resistance is the 2010 Europa League, won during his time at Atletico Madrid.

Los Rojiblancos have since gone on to far greater success, wrestling the Spanish league title from the duopoly of Barcelona and Real Madrid in 2014 before coming within minutes of beating their city rivals in the Champions League final a matter of weeks later.

Appointed in 2009, Flores joined an Atleti side who had won just one of their first seven La Liga fixtures and were sinking fast.

He became the 13th manager since the turn of the millennium following a madcap period under the stewardship of former president Jesus Gil and current incumbent Enrique Cerezo.

Since his departure Atleti have won La Liga, the Europa League, the UEFA Super Cup, the Copa del Rey and the Supercopa de Espana. It has been an extraordinary period of success for Madrid’s second side but is it fair to say Flores kick-started the club’s revival?

David Cartlidge, online editor at beIN Sports USA and a regular Spanish contributor to FourFourTwo magazine does not believe so. He explained: “He laid a tiny bit of the foundations. Diego Simeone has since come in, ripped it all up and got the club back to where they used to be.

“That Atletico squad was quite interchangeable and Simeone has brought his own players and applied his own stamp to it. But I think it is often forgotten quite what a good job Flores did there, though.

“Atletico before Diego Simeone and Valencia when Flores was there, were completely different to now; they were both known for how quickly they went through managers and both have only really found any sense of stability since Flores left.”

One of the great strengths of Jokanovic’s reign was his tactical versatility and Cartlidge says the Hornets can expect more of the same from the new man.

“Tactically speaking he is very astute and the kind of manager you would compare to Rafa Benitez or Unai Emery in terms of his tactical awareness and flexibility,” he explained.

“He likes a counter-attacking style and although he is clear on the style of play he prefers, he is very flexible and will accommodate the suitability of the players.

“He will either go with a 4-3-3 or a 4-2-3-1 system but if things are not working then he will not be afraid to change them.

“He likes to get his teams on the training field – rather than in the gym – and focused on improving technique and tactical ability.”

A former player at Real Madrid, Flores’ coaching career began with Los Merengues in 2001 – four years after retiring with Real Zaragoza. His first senior role followed with Getafe and he would deliver the safety of a 13th-place finish in his maiden season at the helm.

The lure of Valencia proved too strong and he succeeded former Chelsea boss Claudio Ranieri at Los Che, reaching the quarter-finals of the Champions League in 2006/07 whilst securing a second season in Europe’s premier club competition with a fourth-place finish in the league.

But a stuttering start to the following campaign saw Flores sacked in October. It was his longest spell at any club and his last job, back at Getafe earlier this year, lasted just 52 days following a dispute over the sale of a player.

However Cartlidge believes Hornets supporters should not be concerned. “I think he would like to have stayed longer at all his clubs,” he stated.

“He was pretty much led up the garden path [at Getafe]. He was made assurances when he took the job that no-one would be sold and then he had Sammir taken from underneath his feet.

“They are now in danger of an enforced relegation along with Elche (over an unpaid €13 million tax bill). Yet when he took the job he was told things were ok. There were a lot of lies going on at the club.

“At Benfica there was more of a culture clash and I think it was the only time where it was a mutual thing and both parties were quite happy to end it early.”

After leaving Valencia, Flores pitched up in Portugal with Benfica and despite winning the Taca da Liga – the Portuguese domestic cup – he left after one season and returned to Spain to join Atleti in October 2009.

Success followed Flores to the United Arab Emirates where he secured the Emirates Cup and the President’s Cup in successive seasons in charge of Pro-League side Al-Ahli Dubai between 2011 and 2013.

He returned to the Middle East three months after leaving Al-Ahli to take up the reins at Al Ain. With a second President’s Cup safely sewn up, he was ousted in March 2014 following a poor run of league form.

In January of this year Flores returned to Getafe but his second coming was short-lived.

Indeed, his time with the Azulones ended in acrimony after club president Angel Torres lodged an appeal for €2 million with the Judicial and Conciliation Committee of the Spanish Football Federation, claiming he had been “let down” by his former coach.

Speaking in February, Flores claimed his departure had been down to personal reasons.

“It is a personal decision, the product of deep reflection which will allow me to avoid situations which at the time did not make me happy,” he claimed.

“I think it's for the best, the best decision and the best way to dignify my profession and in some way to show respect for myself.”

Arriving as Watford’s fifth head coach in 12 months, Flores will be keen to finally put down roots in WD18.