In light of recent rumors regarding Watford head coach Valerien Ismael’s status, EFL analyst Carlton Palmer declared that he believes the Frenchman would “lose his job imminently.”
The Hornets have only won once in their last seven league games, which is a dismal run of play in the Championship. Due to this poor run of play, the team is now 11 points behind Hull City for the last playoff berth.
In addition, Watford finds itself in a precarious situation in the standings; while they still have games against teams like Leeds United, Ipswich Town, and Southampton, they are nine points clear of the relegation zone and not much in danger of falling out of the top six.
The Hertfordshire team was defeated 2-1 by a struggling Huddersfield Town on Saturday at Vicarage Road, an unfortunate result. After the defeat, talkSPORT revealed that the board was considering a management replacement.
Having taken over in May last year from the departing Chris Wilder, Ismael was handed a new three-year deal as early as October, with the side down near the bottom of the table.
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Watford’s next game takes place on Saturday away at a revitalised Millwall and former player Palmer has stated he’d be surprised if Ismael was still in the dugout. Speaking to Football League World, the pundit said:
“It all began so brightly for Ismael, as he was handed a contract extension in October following a positive start to the season. But with it looking almost certain that Watford won’t make the playoffs with a 2-1 defeat to Huddersfield Town, you know what the Watford owners are like.
“I’d be surprised if he survived another week or so as manager of the football club. The results have been very disappointing, the performances have been disappointing. Obviously, the table doesn’t lie and with them being so far adrift of the top six, I expect him to lose his job imminently.”
