Watford: Luton Town and Rob Edwards had epic last laugh in 2023 - View | OneFootball

The Luton boss was sacked by the Hatters' arch-rivals, before going on to win promotion with the Bedfordshire outfit at the end of the same term.

Highlights

Watford moved quickly to appoint current Luton Town boss Rob Edwards, ahead of the 2022/23 campaign.

Roy Hodgson had endured a fairly disastrous spell and with Edwards meeting the fans for the first time on the penultimate matchday of the 2021/22 season, he had plenty of time to put his stamp on the Hornets' squad.

This looked set to be the start of a new and potentially exciting era, with CEO Scott Duxbury telling the Watford Observer back in June 2022 that the club would be supporting Edwards "come hell or highwater".

This was a big statement to make, considering how high managerial turnover was at the club under Gino Pozzo.

Xisco Munoz, Claudio Ranieri and Hodgson were all brought in to try and guide the Hornets to success during 2021/22, but none of them were able to succeed.

With this in mind, having stability under Edwards by giving him time to put his stamp on the Hertfordshire outfit seemed like the right move.

Plenty of players came through the door during the summer window - and plenty left - with there being a considerable amount of movement at Vicarage Road during the summer of 2022.

Rob Edwards' spell at Watford

Things didn't always go Edwards' way during his reign in Hertfordshire, but he didn't really have much of an opportunity to prove his worth before he was dismissed.

Considering all the transfer activity that was happening, the fact the club went unbeaten in their opening five league games of the season was impressive, and they secured wins against Burnley and Sheffield United, two sides that went on to be promoted at the end of the 2022/23 season.

Results did go downhill a little after that and angry fans confronted the Hornets' players following their 2-0 away defeat against Blackburn Rovers in mid-September, his penultimate game in charge.

And to end a difficult mini-spell, they registered a 2-2 home draw against Sunderland, a result that couldn't have been seen as disastrous despite the fact the Black Cats had only just been promoted from League One at the time.

Edwards' record after the first set of games wasn't brilliant, and the club had also exited the Carabao Cup, but many people blasted the club's decision to sack the Englishman following the game against Tony Mowbray's side.

Luton Town and Rob Edwards had the last laugh after Watford sacking

In November 2022, less than two months after Edwards left Vicarage Road, the Hornets' arch-rivals Luton Town were on the prowl for a new manager following Nathan Jones' move to Southampton.

At the time, the Hatters were on the up following a poor start to the season, and they had to appoint the right man to take them back into the top six.

Edwards, despite his very short tenure in Hertfordshire, was given the opportunity to succeed Jones, having guided Forest Green Rovers to League One at the end of the 2021/22 season.

And he was able to continue Jones' excellent work, beating the Hornets at home during a run that saw the Hatters go unbeaten in their last 14 games of the campaign.

This run ensured they secured a place in the top six, with Luton finishing in third in the end.

Watford, meanwhile, finished in 11th, having failed to succeed under Edwards' successors Slaven Bilic and Chris Wilder.

The Hornets saw Luton beat the Black Cats in the play-off semi-final, before winning on penalties against Coventry City at Wembley to secure a place in the Premier League.

Anything could happen this season and the Hornets may even finish above the Hatters at the end of this term, because nothing can be ruled out, but the promotion alone will have hurt the Hornets' fans, who deserve a lot better.

The decision to sack Edwards was a rash one, and it came back to bite the Hertfordshire outfit, who could have enjoyed real success under Edwards.