Will the Hornets sting under Zola?

The latest club to be taken over by ambitious owners are Championship side Watford. The Pozzo family have wasted little time in outlining their plans for the Hornets, and have already replaced manager Sean Dyche with their compatriot and former West Ham manager, Gianfranco Zola.

The sky appears to be the limit as the family, that also own Udinese and Granada, have said that they aren’t expecting a ‘financial return’ from the club, they just want to establish them as a Premier League outfit.

Having claimed ‘longetivity’ as key to success, the Pozzos plan to build the Vicarage Road team over a period of time, and with a ‘world class scouting network’ in place, Watford’s owners are looking to bring fresh talent to the club, but insist that they will not alter the clubs identity.

The terminating of Dyche’s contract will be viewed by some as harsh, especially seeing as the former centre half led the Hertfordshire club to their highest finish in 4 years last season, but the new owners clearly feel that Zola will seek to play the style of football that the crave.

The sentiments of Gianluca Nani, the newly appointed technical director, illustrate this: ‘I think Watford’s fans can expect an exciting and attacking style from his team. Gianfranco represents this project perfectly.’

Although it will take time to shape and build a team, the Pozzos are in it for the long run and their idea to make Watford financially self sufficient will certainly be welcomed by the clubs supporters, they will have to be careful not to make Vicarage Road a place where Italian youngsters can gain playing time.

If they manage this, though, it could be a bright future for the Hornets.

Below is a video of new Watford manager Zola in his playing days.