Ed Still Backs Watford to Reach Coventry's Position in 2025
Ed Still said he knows what Watford need to do to be in Coventry's position next season, as the club head into their final game of the season at home on Saturday. Watford will start that match in 16th place, 13 points off the play-off places, with Still under pressure after winning only three of his 14 games in charge.
Still Faces Final-Day Pressure
Still told Three Counties Radio that he expects scrutiny when results fall short at a club that has had a high turnover of managers. He said: "I'm not on social media, I'm not one to be reading the press every day, but I also know that's part and parcel of football, that when results aren't good, and when there's been such a high turnover of managers here at Watford, there's going to be smoke," and added: "You're prepared for that as a person and a manager - you take it and you move on."
That scrutiny has built around a run that has left Watford in 16th place before the Coventry game. Still was appointed in February on a two-and-a-half-year contract after Javi Gracia resigned, and he is Watford's 11th head coach, not including interim bosses, since the end of the 2020-21 season.
Coventry Set the Standard
Still also pointed to the gap he sees between where Watford are now and where they want to be. He said: "I know how intent I am on being here next season and (to act on) the lessons I've learned, everything I've seen over the past few months, and what needs to be done to make sure that we're in Coventry's position this time next season," which puts the final match into sharper focus than a routine season closer.
He added: "Despite my age I've been in the business for a long time, I've also always been a football fan, so I know exactly what the situation is, what articles are being written and what the fans are saying - that's all the noise on the outside."
Watford's Short-Term Direction
The numbers around Watford's season leave little room for comfort. The club have not finished higher than 11th since relegation from the Premier League in 2020, and the current position keeps the focus on whether Still can turn the lessons from his first months into a stronger finish next season.
Still said the response has to stay internal: "It's just for us to block that out, get on with the job, keep our head down and stay focused on the things that we do control."
