Gaffer Tracker: Focus on Watford

Watford have a reputation for getting through managers at an alarming rate and the Hornets have twitched for the second time in the space of just three months, replacing Quique Sanchez Flores with Nigel Pearson.

Usually they have a replacement lined up to swing through the revolving door but the process of replacing Sanchez Flores was a bumpy one.

Chris Hughton, Quique Setien and Sam Allardyce headed the next Watford manager market before a gamble on Pearson was landed with last Friday's announcement that the 56-year-old had been appointed on a deal until the end of the season.

Pearson has experience of winning relegation battles and was responsible for getting Leicester promoted to the Premier League and established in the top flight.

But he lasted just 14 matches at Derby between May and October 2016 and was sacked by Belgian second division club Leuven in February this year.

He has inherited a squad capable of doing much, much better but it will take a huge effort to lift them out of the hole they are in.

Under Watford's model the buying and selling of players is usually taken out of the head coach's hands but Pearson will need to identify a few January reinforcements.

The club have lacked a dominant centre-back for several seasons and could do with adding another decent central midfielder because there is a massive drop off whenever Etienne Capoue or Abdoulaye Doucoure are unavailable.

Watford are the league lowest scorers with nine goals but there is enough offensive talent in the squad.

They have largely the same attack as last season, plus club-record summer signing Ismaila Sarr, who is starting to show why Watford rated him so highly.

Today's top sports betting stories

Follow us on Twitter @racingpostsport

Like us on Facebook RacingPostSport