The man who took London club Watford to the holy grail of the Premier League back in 2006 was yesterday dismissed from his post as Coventry manager after an alarming slump in form. Aidy Boothroyd was hailed as ‘the new Jose Mourinho’ during his time at Vicarage Road but his career seems to have taken a nosedive since those glory days.
Boothroyd took over the reins at Watford in 2005 with the club in the midst of a relegation battle. He immediately steered the Hornets to safety and started preparing for the following season. The preparation evidently paid off as, against all the odds, he took his side to the Premiership via the play-offs. Given that prior to the campaign many tipped them to be exiting the Championship in the opposite direction, this was a remarkable feat.
The comparisons to Mourinho were certainly understandable; he had studied sports science in much the same way as his Portuguese associate having had his playing career cut short at 26 due to injury. He also studied training sessions of top European sides and picked the brains of some of the continent’s finest coaches. He was praised as being a fantastic motivator, tactically decisive and at the cutting edge of technology. Like the ‘Special One’ he is also not short of confidence, stating that he was ‘born to be a manager’ and drawing up a seven-point plan culminating in international management before he had even started out as a boss. At 34 the Yorkshireman was the youngest manager in the Premier League and had his team playing some fantastic football. It seemed the sky was the limit.
So what has happened to Boothroyd? How has he gone from being tipped as a future England manager to being an unemployed Football League manager?
The decline seemed to start during his debut season in the cruellest of leagues: the Premiership. Despite his Watford side making a lot of friends with their brand of football, the campaign culminated in disappointment as the Hornets finished in 20th position and were relegated back to the Championship. Boothroyd was desperate to be back in the big time and the following season started impressively as Watford topped the division after the first few months. But then the rot set in. Star striker Marlon King was sold in the January transfer window and a miserable run concluded in the North Londoners only just making the play-offs on the final day. However, their heroics were for nothing as they were humiliated over two legs by Hull City. It could be argued Boothroyd’s career has never quite recovered from that setback.
After a prolonged absence from the game he loves Boothroyd returned with a short, but impressive, stint at Colchester in League One. This gave him the platform to impress and when the Coventry job was offered in the summer he jumped at the chance to move up a level. Everything seemed perfect at the Ricoh Arena; closer to his family home at a club with a strong financial setup and impressive facilities.
However, Boothroyd’s time at Coventry almost reflects his career as a manager to date. After a very impressive start the Sky Blues powered in to the top positions in the league and it looked like Aidy might work his magic again. But, again, the good times did not stick around. It was after a run of 1 win in their last 16 games that the Coventry owners decided to dispense with Boothroyd’s services. What happens with his teams? He’s been credited with being fantastic at bonding with his players and getting a real team spirit amongst his troops so it is not immediately obvious why his teams have tended to tail off after a good start. Maybe it is down to the Mourinho effect, whereby the Special One seldom stays at one club long before seeking pastures new. Perhaps other managers simply become wise to his tactics.
Whatever the reasons, this is clearly a crucial period in Boothroyd’s career. It would be astonishing if another club did not take a punt on him but it may well be his last opportunity if he does not make it work. He is undoubtedly talented at a time when there seems to be a real scarcity in promising, young, English managers. Indeed, his central defender at Watford, and one of his biggest supporters, was Malky Mackay, now achieving wonderful things with Boothroyd's old charges in the Championship. No doubt he has taken some of his mentor’s techniques on board. But it really is make or break time for one of Watford’s favourite sons; does he want to be mentioned in the same breath as Jose Mourinho or does he want to be consigned to the managerial scrapyard? You get the feeling it’s all or nothing with Aidy Boothroyd.
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