If Watford sack Valerien Ismael, promotion winner must be on Hornets radar: View | OneFootball

Watford should look to appoint Scott Parker should they choose to sack Valerien Ismael.

The Hornets have picked up just two wins from their last 13 Championship games.

This poor run of form has led to them going from seventh and two points outside the play-off places, to now being 13th.

Whispers of possible relegation are getting louder by the week at Vicarage Road. With that in mind, trigger-happy owner Gino Pozzo may consider changing the manager again for the 12th time over the past four-and-a-half years.

Such a decision would make the new three-year contract

But knowing Watford and the way they operate, it wouldn't come as a shock if they gave Ismael the axe.

If they do, Pozzo should look no further than Parker to replace him.

Given his proven track record in the Championship and his charisma, he'd be a good fit at Watford.

Parker's perfect Championship promotion record

Parker has managed two seasons in the Championship and he has a 100% track record of getting a team out of the division.

Fulham were promoted through the play-offs in 2019/20 and two years later he won automatic promotion with Bournemouth.

Parker took caretaker charge at Craven Cottage towards the back end of the 2018/19 season.

Fulham were relegated from the Premier League in May 2019 but they reacted by putting their faith in Parker and giving him the job on a full-time basis. He repaid that faith and took them back up.

When Parker took the reins at the Vitality Stadium immediately after leaving West London, he had a similar level of impact at Bournemouth as he won automatic promotion to the Premier League in 2021/22.

Though he often had the advantage of strong squads for the level, the perfect record speaks for itself.

At Watford, he would walk into a similar environment to what he did at his previous two jobs in England.

Despite currently plying their trade in the Championship, Watford have become accustomed to top-flight football as they have spent six of the last seven seasons prior to this one as a Premier League team.

Similarly, Fulham were also used to Premier League football as they spent 13 consecutive seasons in the top division between 2001/02 and 2013/14. Promoted again in 2017/18 but immediately relegated, Parker came in and steered the club back to where they believed they belonged.

Similarly, Bournemouth played five successive seasons in the Premier League between 2015/16 and 2019/20. Missing out in the play-offs in 2021 before a poor run of results at the start of the next campaign led to Jonathan Woodgate being sacked. Parker came in and got them promoted at the first time of asking.

Watford want a return to the Premier League

At Watford, just like at Fulham and Bournemouth, the aim will be the same – win promotion as quickly as possible.

The Hornets still have the mentality that they're a Premier League club and should still be playing at that level.

Of course, they don't have a divine right. However, after spending so many years in the top flight and reaping the benefits both on and off the pitch, they will be missing it.

Parker can be backed with resources because the club will still be financially healthy from the money they will have earned from TV deals in the Premier League.

After receiving a combined fee of £43m last summer for João Pedro and Ismaïla Sarr from Brighton and Marseille last summer, they need to reinvest it.

They could receive another hefty chunk of money this summer for Yaser Asprilla. The Colombian has recently been linked with a big-money move to Barcelona.

The best man to reinvest this money into a team good enough to win promotion is Parker. He's done it before and can do it again at Watford.

Parker's charming charisma fits the bill at Watford

Parker hasn't just got Fulham and Bournemouth promoted, he put strong foundations in place for them to succeed in the Premier League.

He wants his teams to play good football, build from the back, and play with high energy.

It's seen as the fashionable way to play nowadays and at Watford it will be no different for Pozzo.

Players don't just buy into Parker's way of playing, they like him as a person and that's where it all starts.

A likable character off the pitch, Parker no doubt takes that onto the training pitch with him. When he does, he spreads his ideas to good effect.

Watford built an identity in the Premier League of being hard to play against. The likes of Troy Deeney and Odion Ighalo scored goals, and they often played a rigid 4-4-2 based on being compact off the ball and direct on it.

That's no longer the way owners want managers to play. They want open, expansive football and play from the back.

Similar to how Vincent Kompany came into Burnley and changed the identity that Sean Dyche built, Pozzo will surely want Watford to undergo a similar transformation.