Watford FC — around the 2020/21 season (Vladimir Ivić)

Club overview

• Full name: Watford Football Club
• Nickname: The Hornets
• Founded: 1881
• Stadium: Vicarage Road, Watford, Hertfordshire
• Owner (2020): Pozzo family (Gino Pozzo)

Managerial note — Vladimir Ivić

• Vladimir Ivić, a Serbian coach with previous spells at Maccabi Tel Aviv and PAOK, was appointed Watford head coach in September 2020.
• His spell at the club was short-lived: he was in charge for a few months during the early part of the 2020/21 Championship campaign and departed in December 2020.
• Ivić arrived aiming to implement an organized, pressing and possession-oriented style, but mixed results and a short run of poor form led to a change of head coach before the second half of the season.

2020/21 season context and outcome

• Competition: EFL Championship (Watford were relegated from the Premier League at the end of 2019/20 and contested the 2020/21 Championship).
• After Ivić’s departure in December, Francisco “Xisco” Muñoz was appointed and oversaw the remainder of the campaign.
• Final outcome: Watford finished the 2020/21 Championship season as runners-up and were promoted back to the Premier League for 2021/22.

Squad & notable figures (around that season)

• Troy Deeney — long-serving captain and influential striker.
• Ismaila Sarr — key attacking player who featured prominently across 2019–2021.
• The squad combined experienced Championship/Premier League pros and younger players brought in under Pozzo-family recruitment policy.

Summary

Vladimir Ivić’s time at Watford was brief (appointed in September 2020 and departed in December 2020). He managed the club during the opening months of the 2020/21 Championship campaign, but did not remain for the full season; his successor, Xisco, ultimately led Watford to promotion as Championship runners-up, returning the club to the Premier League for 2021/22.