Watford announced Tom Cleverley would take permanent charge of the club in April; Cleverley became Watford's 20th permanent manager in the last 12 years; Wayne Rooney takes charge of Plymouth in his fourth role as a manager
Thursday 8 August 2024 10:17, UK
Troy Deeney says he is worried for his former club Watford ahead of their Championship campaign saying head coach Tom Cleverley enters the new season with 'one hand tied behind his back'.
Watford's 15th-place finish last season in the Championship was the first time the club had ended the season in the bottom half since 2014.
Cleverley has been tasked with turning the club's fortunes around after taking full-time charge of the club in April. His appointment at Vicarage Road followed an initial interim stint after Valerian Ismael was sacked in March.
The 34-year-old ended a six-game winless run at the back end of last season in his first game in charge with a 1-0 victory over Sunderland but a loss on the final day to Middlesbrough meant they finished the season six points above Birmingham City, who were relegated to League One.
Further unease has spread into the Watford fanbase following an underwhelming pre-season that included a 2-0 loss to League Two side Gillingham as well as defeats to Reading and Wycombe. Former Watford captain Deeney has shared his concerns for his former team-mate as Cleverley enters his first full season in management.
"I think he's got one hand tied behind his back," Deeney told Sky Sports
"I'm nervous for him. Not because he's not good enough, because he's proved he's good enough and he knows his stuff. But I think Watford are in a huge transition at the moment in regards to the amount of finances that are available.
"If you are a fan that's older than five, you can remember the Premier League and the players that we had at that time. Any and every one of our former starting XI, fans would die for one of those players right now. We'd all walk back into the first team."
Watford have already been faced with some key departures with Ismael Kone completing a transfer to French Ligue 1 side Marseille. Several others have also been linked with moves away, heaping further pressure on Cleverley before a ball has been kicked.
"I don't think he's got enough goals in the team at the moment," Deeney said.
"He could be losing big personalities, big characters, and probably your better quality players and having to do it with young kids.
"I worry for him because, as we know, Watford will not hesitate in making a change if they think things are wrong."
While there are some potential problems, Deeney believes one of the standout players in the Championship next season will be a Watford player.
"Tom Dele-Bashiru is my diamond in the rough," he said.
"This has to be his year to take it on and stay injury-free, which is the main part. He's got to be the guy that everyone looks at and goes, 'How's he at Watford?'
"He has got all of the pieces [to be a standout player]."
Wayne Rooney was a surprise appointment for Plymouth when he was named as the club's new head coach in May.
Roone's role at Plymouth will be his fourth job in management and follows a disappointing 83 days in charge of Birmingham last season. The 38-year-old took that job under controversial circumstances, taking over from the popular John Eustace who had led the Blues to sixth place in the league.
Upon Rooney's dismissal, Birmingham were sat in 20th place and were subsequently relegated to the third tier for the first time in 29 years.
"He isn't getting these jobs because his name is Wayne Rooney," Deeney told Sky Sports.
"People are quick to write off coaches but there are circumstances behind it. At Derby, apparently, he was paying people out of his own money to play. And he nearly kept them up.
"Then he goes to Birmingham when let's be fair, I know because John Eustace is my friend, it was a difficult situation to go into, but Blues was a mess. It still is a mess.
"When Rooney went in, he went into a team that was overperforming, playing a certain style of football that he was tasked with changing, without even having a transfer window. It's quick and easy to write him off.
"I was critical of him at the time. I thought he was trying to change too much too soon. But he's got a job at Plymouth, but they already play good football.
"They've already got a goalscorer. And he's now tweaking his style of play onto a team that's used to playing football. So you shouldn't [write him off].
"This should be the one. If he fails this one, then you can say he's not good enough."
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