We take a look back at the key points made by new Watford head coach Quique Sanchez Flores during his first press conference as Hornets boss

The Spaniard didn’t duck any questions, although a couple may have been lost in translation, and he started with an opening message expressing his happiness at taking charge at Vicarage Road. 

He said: “This is an amazing moment for me to be here (at Watford) and for me to have arrived in the Premier League.

“I am very happy because it is a dream come true and I am happy to be at Watford.

“This is a family club and a big moment for me. This is the moment for me to start in the Premier League, a league that I admire and love.

“So thank you Watford for giving me the opportunity here and I will try and give my best to the club in the future.”

It was a warm introduction, a nice touch. The press conference then began...

Why Watford?

Flores’ career in management is littered with trophies and he has managed top sides such as Atletico Madrid and Valencia in Spain and Benfica in Portugal.

So how did Hornets owner Gino Pozzo persuade the 50-year-old to join a newly promoted club in Hertfordshire?

He explained: “Mr Pozzo is a good person and he has a big responsibility. He knew how to explain the project to me so it wasn’t a difficult decision.

“I watched [on video] Watford’s last five or six games of last season and made a report. I recognise this kind of club.

“When I started to coach almost 12 years ago it was at Getafe, a club like this. “You find you happiness in different places and I decided straight away that Watford was that place.”

He added: “I was in communication with [former Hornets boss] Oscar (Garcia). He explained everything and spoke really well about Watford. So my impression of Watford is good.

“Oscar only said good words. He said it was a pity he had to leave because he was sick but he was happy here.

"He said Mr Pozzo was very respectful and he loved to watch training. He spoke about how Watford was a family club and it was a club that can grow.”

Never forget Jokanovic

Watford are a Premier League team thanks to the excellent work of last season’s players and staff. Slavisa Jokanovic who Flores replaced after the Serbian failed to agree at new contract with the Hornets, will always be remembered as the man who guided the Golden Boys into the top flight.

And Flores was quick to pay tribute to his predecessor. He said: “I must say thanks to Jokanovic because he did amazing work in the last year. If I can work at Watford in the Premier League that is because of Jokanovic and his staff.

“I will not forget that and I want the fans to remember Jokanovic’s promotion with this team. But football is football. This is our situation now and we must continue with the same spirit.”

Flores’ morale code

It first came to light that Watford had approached Flores about taking charge at Vicarage Road while the Hornets were still in negotiations with Jokanovic.

However, the Spaniard insists he only spoke to the club once it became clear the Serbian would leave the Golden Boys.

He said: “I have a rule in my life that I never have contact with a team when that team has a coach. “So when I spoke to Mr Pozzo Watford didn’t have a head coach.

“That is out of respect to me and respect to the current coach. So when I felt free to talk to Mr Pozzo it was because Watford and Jokanovic didn’t find a deal.”

The only choice

It is believed Flores’ former club Getafe wanted the Spaniard to return to the club this summer. The Golden Boys boss was asked if that was the case and if he had any other offers on the table.

“I don’t like to talk about that because I don’t like to compare clubs,” he said. “I took the best decision for me and my kids so I am very happy.

“I can imagine leading Watford in this stadium. I can imagine my kids coming to the stadium, studying here, playing here. This is my plan; not only a professional plan but a personal plan.”

The managerial merry-go round

Flores is Watford’s fifth head coach in the space of a year. Beppe Sannino, Oscar Garcia, Billy McKinlay and Slavisa Jokanovic have all come and gone.

Given the high turnover, is Flores concerned? Apparently not.

He said: “Sometimes this [managerial changes] happens. This is not my experience as a coach. I have been training teams for 12 years and only one time I have left before the end of the season.

“You always want to achieve your target, this is my experience as a coach. “But sometimes it [managerial changes] happens at a club and you don’t know why; there are different, complicated, situations.

“Sometimes it is the decision of the coach, sometimes it is the decision of the owner.”

Shaping the Hornets squad

After just under a couple of months off Watford’s players returned to the club on Monday to begin their pre-season training. When Flores spoke to the media he hadn’t yet taken a session on the training pitches.

He did, however, state he wanted two weeks with the current squad before making any transfer decisions.

“I am really, really curious to train with the players this (Tuesday) afternoon,” the former Atletico Madrid and Benfica boss explained.

“It will be the first time I check the players on the pitch. They have only done tests so far.

“I don’t know the players completely. So I will take training and then decide. But (Matej) Vydra, (Daniel) Tozser and everyone else were important players last year.”

He continued: “In the first two weeks we will train with the whole team, all the players who will start with us and a lot of young players.

“Then in the middle, in a couple of weeks, it is just the [first-team squad] players. “The new players will come in the last part of pre-season.”

The transfer market

So far this summer Watford have completed three signings; defender Sebastian Prodl, goalkeeper Giedrius Arlauskis and striker Matej Vydra.

Further additions will arrive as the Hornets prepare for their Premier League campaign and Flores says he has worked closely with Gino Pozzo in identifying further additions. “The [player] reports are made; I have told Mr Pozzo the players I like.

"We agree about the main players we need in the squad. At the moment we have no problem in building the squad.

“I must recognise who the main players are in the team and then in the future other players will come in.”

He continued: “I am really, really confident with Mr Pozzo because he has a lot of experience of the transfer market.

“We are preparing offers for players that can help us. We are not in a hurry; that is not good for decisions. So I am not worried about that.

“We have been working very hard for many weeks to think about what is best for the team. We are working for the future but it is difficult to arrange your squad in the first weeks of pre-season.

“I am not in a hurry. I am in contact with Mr Pozzo every day so I am very happy.”

Flores was asked if he would recommend players to Pozzo from his native Spain. He replied: “I know players in Spain but I don’t want to propose lots of Spanish players to Mr Pozzo.

“Fortunately we have notes on players from around the world and we are working with staff who have scouted a lot of players. When we meet to talk about transfers we have a lot of countries where we can sign players form.”

On reports linking Watford with moves for Gefafe duo Alvaro Vazquez and Pablo Sarabia, who Flores has worked with before, he added: “I love both of them. Of course when I meet Mr Pozzo I will recommend players but we’ll try to mix the best players to do what is best for the team.”

The Flores philosophy

Spanish coaches like to play passing football; that is the cliché. Does Flores fall into that category? Yes.

However, he also wants defensive discipline, something that he puts down to being influenced at the start of his coaching career by former Liverpool boss Rafa Benitez.

“The organisation of the team and the system depends on the players you have. But if I play 4-2-3-1, 4-4-2 or 4-3-3 it is very important we attack well and it is important we defend well,” he reasoned.

“For me, football today is about the transitions; what happens when you regain the ball and what happens when you lose the ball. That is very important.

“For me you can mix perfectly styles here. You look at Benitez, I always admired him and wanted to organise Atletico Madrid, Valencia and Benfica in this way.

“But in the last years, it is true, the dynamic is a little different. Everybody wants to play [passing football] but how are we going to play? And what players do I have.

“Sometimes I like to play like Guardiola and I have studied Guardiola but it depends on awhat kind of players tou have at the club.

“Do you play from the first phase or try to play from the middle? Or do you try to play only in the last part of the pitch. I think it is very important to be clear on these things or else you can confuse the players.”

He added: "I think players like to play football. When they were kids and are thinking about playing in the big stadiums and the top leagues, they imagine they are playing with the ball."

Adapting to England

For the first time in his career Flores will live and work in England. His family will shortly join him in this country but he accepts there will be a period of adjustment after several years in Europe and a brief spell in the Middle East.

He said. “I come from a different country and I want to adapt as soon as possible. I am working very hard to improve my language and I am working very hard to learn the style [of English football].

“Of course, I do not want to ignore that I am coming to work in the Premier League and the English style is completely different to Spain.

“The most important thing is to find the balance between what I want to do and the football l am working in.”