Hello....is there anybody in there....just nod if you can hear me.... Welcome back to Watford FC and the comfortably numb experience of life in the Championship. We are back!!!!!! But we haven't really got a clue what it's going to be like this year do we? The pro Gino group feel like it is time to forgive and forget with a rallying cry behind our new Club Captain (who hasn't blocked me yet) Daniel Bachmann. Those that believe in this transitional year are in for a treat with the reduced squad fillers that we have been accustomed to for far too long. No more of these strange signings is a good thing............ We've released/sold/lost down the Mogi sofa of doom 20+ players since the end of the season and really reduced the wage spend to a sustainable level. Imran Louza is now our top earner so let's hope we get a decent chunk of games out of him this year to justify the pay. It says a lot that 5 of the players we released are still without a club though....... For the Gino out crew the future is bleak: The crown jewels have been sold We haven't signed a new goalie At Our Place is rigged and only Gino in fans can attend Porteous isn't Captain The home kit is too black The away kit is naff The pitch is too nice for our team of cloggers The sponsor's logo is too big It's perverse...... Let's hope by the Monday we will have new signings announced properly. I hear the delay on the Georgian guy being official is no one can actually pronounce his name properly. So onto our new boss and hopefully one for longer term than normal. Ismael expects a high press and likes to deploy a big target man. Is this a chance for Bayo to really cement a regular place? He scored twice yesterday in a secretive lunch time behind closed doors friendly, which had nothing to do with Gino not wanting to spend a penny on actually making it proper fixture. This does seem to suggest he's sticking around if he played and scored. As for QPR they have signed Begovic from under the noses of "them up the M1". They also have signed a few youngsters but otherwise nothing flashy. They have lost their top CB Rob ****ie to Bristol City and the goalscoring goalie Sonny Dieng to Middlesboro. Both players I would have loved to see at Watford. The returning Ilias Chair is expected to be back and will probably run rungs around us if he does play. QPR forum link: https://www.fansnetwork.co.uk/football/queensparkrangers/forum/ Tache prediction: 1-1 They always seem to play well against us and let's be honest we don't really know what to expect! Also: Pedro looks amazing at Brighton already doesn't he.....
Thanks for that. Agree it's hard to know what to make of where we are and where we're going from here. In fact I'm going to reserve my season prediction this year until the season is over. (Ignoring the fact I already posted in the other thread)
I think QPR will be in the bottom three, might even be this season’s whipping boys. This could be our easiest fixture of the season on day one, so will be interesting to see how we cope. If we struggle to break them down, then I think it’ll be a bad warning sign for the season ahead.
Not wishing to tempt fate (said Malt tempting fate lol) but under our Italian ownership we’ve only lost one of our opening matches. We even managed to win the first match of the terrible season two years ago which saw us relegated with only five more victories in the remaining 45 fixtures. Ismael traditionally starts well. He was unbeaten in his first three matches with Barnsley and his first ten with Brom. Writing this six days out, I suspect we will all be disappointed with our starting eleven next weekend, both because of the lack of starters among our signings so far plus a lack of other signings yet made in key areas. However, I do expect to see a team well coached and set up, playing more as a team and pulling in the same direction. The next few weeks will show us all which direction that’s likely to be!
It's such a strange time isn't it. No clue if Tom Ince is fit. Or if new signings are signed. Or if we played trialists yesterday. I thought we were secretive with transfers and injuries but it seems we are now secretive with line ups too!
QPR have no fit centre backs at time of writing and just lump the ball up to Chair and hope he does something. We have to take advantage of their shortcomings, get in their faces and make them make mistakes. What little I have seen of the team so far seems to indicate that we will do just that. Hold out shape and keep our nerve and we will be on to a winner. Just make sure we don't leave ourselves open to the counter.
That's alright, we've got no strikers. Watford love to gift a weakened or out-of-form opposition with 3 points. It's how we do things.....
I am surrounded by QPR supporters in WD19 - they are incredibly pessimistic. They know their manger is a passionate supporter of the club, but reckon too many of their team simply don’t care. Today on the allotment Hoops Barry asked if I was going - he said Watford will thrash them. I am not so sure!
Should be targeting at least 4 from 6 points first two games or a long season could be in store. Given our opening 6 games really need to get points on the board, especially the 4 home games..
Not sure lumping it to someone who's 5"7 is the best strategy, no wonder Oxford battered them yesterday!
Oh how I have missed this. Excitement of the 14:00 team sheet, the expectations of a win and we turn in a Watfordy performance. Think we better find the Shoutbox key before next weekend. Pretty sure Dom had it and lent it to Happy to safegaurd. QPR or "Quarter Pound Of Rubbish" as they were known once did the delightful double over us last season. A cracking 3-2 win at the Vic when we had an injury time leveler ruled out, and then that forgetable 1-0 reverse at their place, where we failed to even push past the halfway line. Who will play? No idea. Who won't play? Ditto. VI has his work cut out that's for sure. Hopefully the new guys who can start get some fitness this week in preperation. Bayo is on the goal path, so I might not be too surprised if he starts (he will). Will our new captain Flappmann make a good impression and lead from the back, or will he drop a clanger in the 90th and lose the game? It won't be a sell out, but considering those cavemen went up last season, QPR are more or less our "season rivals" until next Summer at least. I think we can start with a good result, but I do not think we will solve our goal scoring issues till January at the earliest, which is going to hamper us against sides who score first. Still, from what we have seen and going by the friendlies we were allowed to watch, I think VI is setting us up well and there is a renewed hunger for once. Let's hope we can stay wirh this mindset and not lose our way when games go against us. Watford 2 QPR 2 (Bayo, Asprilla) (Chair x2)
We will start the season slowly. For every win, a number of people will still find something to moan about. For every loss it will trigger a flood of tears. The squad is very different, but still every inch as mid table as last years squad.
They managed to somehow do the double over us last season. We were 5hite in our home game which also came quite early on. We owe them a hiding.
QPR have been something of a bogey team for us in recent years - we've failed to win any of our last 7 league meetings with them. However, I do think we'll end that run on Saturday, mostly due to how poor they're supposed to be this season rather than any great optimism that we will produce some scintillating performance. 2-0 to Watford. The glory days are back.
Ah, how could I forget our glorious 1-0 victory on the way to the FA Cup final in 2019? I have edited my post as appropriate.
I read one QPR supporter who reckons that they are going "to do a York or Yeovil" (he didn't mention Stockport). Their board makes this place seem positively cheery.
