Watford head coach Vladimir Ivic is looking forward to finally having fans at Vicarage Road, following the news that supporters will be able to attend games after the end of the national lockdown.

Up to 4,000 fans will be able to attend games at the Vic, although that number could be reduced to 2,000 or none at all, depending on which tier the ground is in when the country returns to a regional tiered restriction system.

The club is currently awaiting further information from the government before they roll out their ballot system, which is how the few tickets available will be allocated. The Watford Observer understands that communications are ready to go out to eligible fans once the club knows how many fans they can accommodate.

Ivic is yet to take charge of a game with supporters present after his appointment in the summer, but he says he understands how important they are to the club and hopes this will be the start of stadiums returning to full capacities, provided it is safe for them to do so.

"It's very tough for all of us who work in football. Football is played for the fans, this is the main reason," said Ivic. "We know how the fans of all the clubs, not just our club, want to impact the game and want to be there to support the teams and so for us it's fantastic news. All of us are waiting for the moment when our fans will come back and be with us.

Watford Observer:

"From the beginning I believe that it will be home games. All of us hope that in the future soon, that things will be much better and that they will be travelling with us and be with us in away games."

While Ivic is eagerly anticipating the return of supporters, he has also called for "smart" decisions to be made, in order to keep people safe.

Asked if only permitting home fans to games would provide clubs with an unfair advantage, the head coach said it was not a question of fairness at the moment and that taking care of people was much more important.

"We have to discuss to see what is the best for all of us and what is the safest for all of us," said Ivic. "Now in this moment it's not a question of what is fair what is not fair. First, the main thing for all of us is the health of people. If the government takes a decision to allow people to come, I believe that they need to be aware and be sure how many fans will be safe in the stadium and what is the distance what they need to have between them.

"Life is more important, more than other things. It's something that we need to take care about, the people who are around us, and their families, because we know that this period is not some usual period, it's something new for all of us. It's been a long period, 10 or 11 months, and we know that a lot of people lose their lives because of Covid and we must be smart and we must take care of people."