Soccer Football – Championship – Watford v West Bromwich Albion – Vicarage Road, Watford, Britain – February 20, 2023 Watford’s Ismaila Sarr celebrates scoring their second goal Action Images/Matthew Childs EDITORIAL USE ONLY. No use with unauthorized audio, video, data, device lists, club/league logos or ‘live’ services. Online use during the game limited to 75 images, without video emulation. It is not used in single club/league/player betting, games or publications. Contact your account representative for more details.
It’s been a very mixed season in the Sky Bet Championship for Watford so far.
The inconsistent form started with former boss Rob Edwards early in the campaign, for which he lost his job, and not much has changed since the arrival of Slaven Bilic.
The mitigating factor for Bilic, however, is that he had to deal with a notable injury crisis throughout December, January and earlier this month.
Despite that though, the club are doing well in the hunt for a play-off place in the division, currently sitting just one place outside the top six ahead of this weekend’s clash with Sheffield United. .
In fact, with 13 games to go, depending on whether they show up or not, the Hornets could end the season sitting out of the play-off places just as easily as they could be promoted to the Premier League.
However, a big decision is looming this summer for the club, regardless of which division they find themselves in next summer.
That decision belongs to Senegalese winger Ismaila Sarr, who has nine goals and five assists to her credit in the Championship so far this season.
Having signed a five-year contract when he signed with Rennes in 2019, the 24-year-old will only have one year left on his contract at Vicarage Road this summer.
While it would be great if Sarr were willing to sign a new deal, and that should of course be the club’s first port of call, whether or not the Hornets are a Premier League or Championship side next season He, given his recent history, feels unlikely that he will extend his terms, particularly as he has long been rumored with established Premier League teams previously.
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In that scenario, the Hornets must make a clear and decisive decision about Sarr’s future and move him this summer.
Indeed, while Watford may have resisted any temptation to cash in on the player in January, with Everton making a late offer, they simply have to find a deal that works for them this summer.
Sarr cost around £30m when he joined from Rennes a few seasons ago, a club record fee for quite some distance, and the Hornets simply cannot afford to lose him for nothing after such a huge outlay.
Also, if the club remains a Championship side, their parachute payments will be reduced, meaning Sarr’s sale could either cover the drop in revenue somewhat or be used to make investments this summer that could lead to promotion.
If Watford go up, that problem of course doesn’t exist, however I think it would still be time to part ways with Sarr if he doesn’t sign a new contract.
Watford have been relegated twice under the 24-year-old and now, while those relegations are not his fault, not by much, he has sometimes been accused of being a bit passive in those difficult moments.
They say the definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results and, from both Watford’s and Ismaila Sarr’s perspective, that’s what they would be doing if they stuck together if the club found themselves promoted. .
In fact, then, I really think this summer is the right time for Watford and Ismaila Sarr to part ways.
With a year left on his contract, the Hornets should cash in while they still can, and look to reinvest that money back into the team at multiple positions, rather than have it for another season and lose it for nothing the following year. .