As Watford prepare to face Cardiff today, Vincent Ralph turns the spotlight on the Hornets’ manager.
The Championship is the toughest league in the country. At least that’s what they say.
Fans of League One and League Two may beg to differ this season, as promotion pushes and relegation scraps remain as tight as ever. But the truth is the Championship has proved more unpredictable and difficult to navigate than ever before.
In the midst of the managerial mayhem, shock defeats and incomprehensible slumps, few men have remained at the helm of their clubs for a whole season, let alone steered them on a consistent course towards success.
Cardiff’s Malky Mackay has managed it, as has Hull City’s Steve Bruce, but Gianfranco Zola has recently got the better of one and is now hoping to get one over the other.
Zola’s Watford side face Cardiff this afternoon in what could justifiably be called the biggest game of the day.
Having beaten second-placed Hull 1-0 on Tuesday, Watford are now just one point behind them. Another win today against Mackay’s league leaders may not be enough to steal the title, but it could be the difference between automatic promotion and the roulette of the play-offs.
Zola’s season has been outstanding up to this point. However he got his players, he has done so within the rules of the game. And after a poor start he has turned those players into an effective team, moulding what he had from the start and what he later accrued into a side the envy of many.
That striker Matej Vydra won the Championship Player of the Year at the Football League Awards ahead of Crystal Palace’s Glenn Murray is a snapshot of the Hornets’ season.
The club and their players do what isn’t expected of them, or wasn’t, until now.
Should Zola mastermind another win today against the Bluebirds, there is every chance they will be playing Premier League football next season.
There is a good chance they will make it regardless of today’s result. But after a poor run in March, their manager will hope they take the good form – and the clean-sheet – from their last match at the KC Stadium into this evening’s game.
There will be plenty of chairmen taking note of Zola’s achievements this season and beyond. But he appears to have found a new home at Vicarage Road and owners, in the Pozzo family, who are fully committed to turning their latest club into a sustainable success.
The Italian will be linked with many a position between now and the start of next season. But he would do well to remain where he is, as it seems the journey for Watford’s fans and players alike has only just begun.
What do you think of Zola’s achievements this season? And how far can he ultimately take Watford?
image: © bbmexplorer
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