Watford play their first game of pre-season away at Boreham Wood tonight (7.30pm kick-off) and head coach Valerien Ismael warned against reading too much into anything fans might see this evening.

The new boss has had little more than two weeks with the squad, and has seen the number of players leave outweigh the incomings.

So tonight is very much a case of a work in progress.

“I think we cannot expect a lot after just over two weeks work,” he said.

“This is just the first official friendly game for us to get started, to have that feeling of being out on the pitch and to see the fans.

“It is a chance for the players to have the feeling of playing again, but the focus is on seeing what we have reached so far with the players, what we have implemented already within the squad, and which areas we need to improve.

“So it’s just an assessment and we go forwards from there.

“Pre-season still has five weeks to go before the start, but I’m happy after every game in pre-season because you work much better with the players as you can really properly work on weaknesses or strengths.”

Ismael says his first fortnight has gone well, particularly as he looks to impose his way of working – in training and in games – on the Watford squad.

“It’s been all good so far. For sure this is an intense period in pre-season, on the pitch and off the pitch,” he said.

“I’m very excited to be here and all the expectations I had about the club are actually here. It’s a good feeling to be working hard every day, and that’s what we will be doing each day as we look to build momentum.

“We want to create a squad that will compete this season, and at the same time introduce the principles we want to see on the pitch.

“We need to create a mindset of competitiveness, and also use this period to assess the players and to give them all the chance to make an impact, so that we can decide which players are able to do the job.

“I also need the time to get to know all the people around the club, so that we are all familiar with each other. That’s been my job for the first two weeks since we started.”

After back-to-back seasons of misery, the new head coach was keen to stress that everyone in the squad starts the summer with a clean slate.

“Always I think a new coach means a fresh start for everyone. It’s a new coach, new staff, a new mindset, a new way to play,” he said.

“It’s a reboot for everyone without any judgment, just what we see in our daily work with the players. It enables us to see which players are able to do the job, and which players are not.

“Everything will be a lot clearer after the end of pre-season, but we may also have to make some decisions before then. At the minute, though, we are in the first part where we give everyone a chance to show us what they can do.”

One thing that doesn’t look likely is retired ex-skipper Tom Cleverley joining the first team coaching staff.

It was always anticipated the imminent club announcement would confirm he has a role in the Academy, and Ismael said he wasn’t clear on what job Cleverley might have taken - so it's unlikely it's as part of his staff.

“It’s not something I am aware of,” said the head coach, “but he’s someone who has given a lot to football.

“He’s a player who gave a lot to this club, and it’s normal that the club and himself work on his career after football.”