07 March 2023 , 16:45
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Watford have sacked Slaven Bilic less than six months after installing him as manager, with Chris Wilder quickly named as his successor.
Hornets owner Gino Pozzo has taken drastic action yet again after a dismal run of form which has seen the club win just three Championship games since Christmas Day. Watford are targeting immediate promotion back to the Premier League after last season's relegation but have tumbled down the second-tier table.
Saturday's underwhelming goalless draw at home to Preston North End left them ninth and prompted Pozzo to swing the axe less than six months after appointing Bilic on an 18-month contract in September 2022. Wilder was widely regarded as the frontrunner to replace Bilic and was duly named the new Watford manager, with the former Sheffield United boss previously out of work following his sacking by Middlesbrough last year.
A brief statement confirming Bilic's dismissal read: "Watford FC confirms the departure of Head Coach Slaven Bilic and his coaching staff. The Hornets had won just once in the last eight Sky Bet Championship games under the Croatian Head Coach – part of a run which included just three wins since Christmas. The Board of Directors wishes to place on record its thanks to Slaven for his work during his time at the club."
Ben Manga, the club's technical director, added: "We are all ambitious to succeed this season, so something new is needed quickly while the opportunity of promotion is still real. With the January transfer window over, to change coach is the only option available to re-energise for the final games ahead."
Watford leading the way off the pitch on Green Football Weekend by adding bees
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Watford were held to a 0-0 draw at home by Preston North End in Slaven Bilic's final game in charge (Andrew Kearns - CameraSport via Getty Images)Bilic's sacking comes after Watford parted ways with Rob Edwards last autumn following just 11 games in charge. Pozzo is renowned for his chop-and-change method and the club's hierarchy decided to act in a bid to arrest their slide down the Championship table.
Watford looked like candidates for automatic promotion earlier in the season but find themselves 13 points behind second-placed Sheffield United, who have played one game fewer. The Hornets are also four points adrift of the play-off spots, below Norwich in sixth.
Bilic offered a downbeat verdict on his side's performance in his final press conference, following the stalemate with Preston. He said: "We were weak in good situations, we were weak in 50/50s, we couldn't get stability and control of the game.
"It was a bad [first] 45 minutes for both sides. We stopped them but our aim wasn't only that, our aim was to control and dominate the game. We were nowhere near that in the first half and that's why we made some changes. We were simply not good enough and I was very, very disappointed at half-time. It wasn't what I expected."