Numerous players came and went in the 10 years after the Pozzos took over ownership of Watford FC.
First featured in last season’s matchday programme, James Garrett picks out some of those individuals who made their mark at The Vic…
The signing of an Arsenal goalkeeper came as a surprise in the summer of 2012, with the Hornets sourcing most of their new players on-loan from Udinese or Granada. The one-year deal penned by Manuel Almunia was much needed after Scott Loach’s departure to Ipswich Town, but it still raised eyebrows as the Spanish shot-stopper had after all played in a Champions League final. In recent times he had seen his chances dwindle at the North London club, and in the end it was an easy decision to swap training grounds on Bell Lane, with the switch to Watford causing minimal change to his daily routine.
It was a clear statement of intent from the Golden Boys, as Gianfranco Zola built a unique squad, but one that ultimately went on to play the best football in the league on many occasions. Almunia fitted in right away, and was consistent from an early stage while the rest of the team took a couple of months to find their form. With so many new players, this was hardly a surprise. You could also see that he was really enjoying his football, as so many of the new recruits were, which made for a wonderful season.
Almunia was always calm and never rattled by the rough and tumble of the Championship, and this seemed to spread effortlessly to the entire team as Watford raced up the table in the winter and spring and had sight of the automatic promotion spots when he injured a hamstring. He was ably deputised by 19-year-old local lad Jonathan Bond (now LA Galaxy’s No.1), as the Hornets reached the exciting end to the season. With the possibility of a home win against Leeds in the last league match of the campaign there was a good chance we would get promoted automatically, but then disaster struck. Almunia tweaked his hamstring in the warm-up and so had to rest, and Bond deputised until an early, sickening, head injury meant that third-choice keeper Jack Bonham, who had never played for the club, had to come on. I think we all remember the rest of that fateful game...
Fortunately, Almunia was just about fit enough for the play-off semi-finals that began just a few days later, but he played with a heavily strapped thigh and it was clear his movement was somewhat limited. There is no doubt that in a way this injury played a huge part in the greatest 20 seconds of any Watford supporter’s life, when it came to the last-minute Leicester penalty and that double save. It is well documented that Almunia could barely move by this stage, which makes it more of a miracle that it happened. If you watch it again, look out for how he struggled to get back up for the second save - had he been fitter perhaps he would have dived another way for the rebound instead of just sitting up and blocking the effort. Either way, it is one of the most remarkable saves you could ever see given the circumstances. And well, you know the rest of course…
There was ultimately nothing he could do in the play-off final as Kevin Phillips’ (of course it had to be him) penalty was dispatched superbly, though he wasn’t far off saving it. We had come so close and wanted to do it all over again, so Almunia signed for another season, but as usual the sequel wasn’t as good as the original. The new arrivals from Italy and Spain just weren’t as good as the first season, and we lost key players like Almen Abdi for most of the year to injury.
Almunia still managed nearly 80 appearances for the club in those two seasons before choosing to sign for Cagliari in Serie A; a fateful moment though during his new club’s medical highlighted that he had a heart defect, which meant he had to sadly retire from professional football. He is now a goalkeeping coach in the UAE.
While he will be remembered forever for his part in that goal, he was a class act and a great ambassador for the club in his two years with us.
