Former Bundesliga coach
The first version of this article appeared on May 9 at 9:19 p.m. and was updated one day later with the fixed message.
Former Bundesliga professional and coach Valérien Ismaël is the new head coach at English second division club Watford. After initially “The AthleticReported of “advanced talks” between the 47-year-old Frenchman and the near-London-based club, the Hornets announced the deal on Wednesday night.
“The fact that we can introduce a new coach so early in May means that together we can prepare very well for next season. It’s good news for our club to welcome someone of Valérien’s experience to Watford. We’re all looking forward to working with him,” said Ben Manga, technical director at the second division club.
We are pleased to confirm the appointment of Valérien Ismaël as our new Head Coach.
Welcome to Watford, Valerien.
— Watford Football Club (@WatfordFC) May 10, 2023
As a player, Ismaël was German champion and cup winner with Werder Bremen before moving to Bayern Munich and Hannover 96. As a coach he worked in England for West Bromwich Albion and Barnsley FC. In Germany he worked for 1. FC Nuremberg and VfL Wolfsburg. Most recently, Ismaël worked for Besiktas Istanbul, where he had to vacate his post after just seven months.
After the 35th match day of the current season, Chris Wilder took over the coaching position from Slaven Bilic at Watford and received a contract until the end of the season. The new coach was no longer able to turn the disappointing performance of the Premier League relegated team into a positive one and missed the playoff places by a clear six points. His contract was terminated prematurely.
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