In the world of modern football, the name Adrian Boothroyd is not exactly one that is synonymous with success.
As a player in the 1990s, Boothroyd was well en route to becoming a forgettable football league journeyman before he was forced to retire at just 26 years of age due to a career-ending injury.
For his subsequent managerial experience he is perhaps best remembered as the tactically-antiquated head coach who underperformed at various youth tournaments in charge of England.
The Yorkshireman had been a beneficiary of the infamous Big-Sam-pint-of-wine episode in 2016, which saw Allardyce sacked in disgrace after just one match in charge of the English national team. Boothroyd was bumped up the ranks, moving from the under-20s to the under-21s, where he succeeded Gareth Southgate, who was promoted to lead the senior side.
While Gareth seized his opportunity with both hands, transforming his public image from a penalty-missing Pizza-Hut-advertising has-been into a waistcoat-wearing style icon and England’s most successful manager since Sir Alf Ramsey, Aidy was unable to garner anything like the same sort of status or respect.
Under the stewardship of Boothroyd, the Young Lions failed to qualify from the group stage in two of three under-21 European Championships, which provided the FA with enough evidence to justify his dismissal from the role in 2021.
Now the occupier of the prestigious hotseat at Jamshedpur in the Indian Super League, Boothroyd is on a mission to rebuild his managerial career. Whether he will ever be able to shake off the sceptics and establish himself as a top-tier tactician remains to be seen, but it would appear about as likely as Connor Roy becoming the next President of the United States of America.
It all could have been so different for Boothroyd, though. Micah Richards himself would have been proud of the way in which he burst onto the scene as a manager with Watford in the mid-2000s. Around that time, he was quite legitimately regarded as one of the country’s best young coaches.
So, where did it all go wrong?
When Ray Lewington was sacked as Watford manager in March 2005 after a run of just four victories in 24 league matches, Watford chairman Graham Simpson had a crucial decision to make. Staring down the barrel of relegation to the third tier of the English pyramid, his next move was pivotal to the future of the financially-threatened football club.
Although no immediate replacement had been lined up, the search strategy was clear.
“A young progressive manager keen to forge a strong reputation in English football" read the club website.
By the following weekend, Simpson had found his man.
At just 34 years of age, Aidy Boothroyd was a relative unknown when he was appointed to be the man to rescue Watford. He was entering the world of football management for the first time having been plucked from the first-team coaching staff under Kevin Blackwell at Leeds United.
It would be fair to say that the fans were unconvinced.
The first three matches of Boothroyd’s tenure did little to improve the supporter sentiment. Defeats at Burnley and Plymouth Argyle preceded a home debut against his former employer as Leeds visited Vicarage Road. The karate kid was unable to prove himself against Mr. Miyagi: Blackwell’s side were victorious by two goals to one.
With the heat already being turned up on Boothroyd, it took Icelandic intervention to quell the flames. Heiðar Helguson’s scruffy winner at bottom-of-the-table Rotherham secured a first win and some much needed breathing space. A close-range finish from the same man at Stoke City two weeks later guaranteed Championship status for the following season with a game to spare.
“I believe we can get promoted next season and that will be the aim,” Boothroyd bullishly claimed after the victory at the Britannia Stadium.
However, it was the 20-goal centre forward, rather than the young manager, who was widely credited for keeping Watford in the division.
The aforementioned financial insecurity at the club, a hallmark of the post-Elton pre-Pozzo era at Watford, meant that Helguson departed to join Fulham in a £1.1 million deal that June.
Minus their star striker and with plenty of doubts still surrounding Boothroyd, as they headed into the 2005/06 season, Watford were the bookies’ favourites for relegation.
That summer, it was less a shepherding of a new era, more of a ‘kick in the door, burn the place to the ground and start from scratch’ style of approach from Boothroyd.
As well as Helguson, young striker Danny Webber and workhorse defensive midfielder Brynjar Gunnarsson were sold after attractive offers from Championship rivals Sheffield United and Reading respectively. Experienced first-team regulars like Sean Dyche, Bruce Dyer, Neil Cox and Paul Devlin all followed out of the door.
In their place, Boothroyd looked down into League One for two up-and-coming strikers in Marlon King and Darius Henderson. Left-back Jordan Stewart was signed from Leicester City, while midfielder Matthew Spring and centre-half Clarke Carlisle, two players Boothroyd knew well from his time at Elland Road, were also acquired, as well as Scottish defender Malky Mackay on a free transfer from West Ham United. To complete the jigsaw of his new squad, Boothroyd picked up two youngsters on loan from Manchester United: winger Christopher Eagles and goalkeeper Ben Foster joined for the year.
For all the new arrivals, it was a fresh-faced local lad who ignited the Hornets’ promotion push.
After succumbing to Preston at Vicarage Road in week one, Boothroyd took his team down to Devon for their opening away game of the campaign at Plymouth. Three first half goals for the Pilgrims put a significant dampener on the south-western sunshine for the travelling fans. A general sense of resignation was already brewing: this was going to be another long slog of a season.
Ashley Young, however, had other ideas.
The spritely winger took matters into his own hands in the second half at Home Park. Just over five minutes in, the 20-year-old whipped in a delicious free-kick to give Watford a lifeline. Ten minutes later, Young latched onto a flick on and then lashed a shot past Romain Larrieu in the Plymouth net.
A kid who had gone the whole of last season without scoring had pulled two fabulous strikes out of seemingly nowhere to earn a thrilling draw.
As Helguson had done a few months earlier, Young had given Boothroyd a lifeline. This time, he was going to make the most of it.
Five wins in the next six games catapulted Watford up to third in the table before they faced early pace-setters Sheffield United at The Vic in late September. At two-nil up eight minutes into the second half, the happy Hornets were positively bouncing.
Then, disaster struck.
Phil Jagielka initially headed the Blades back into the game before a mad minute saw a deflected goal for Paul Ifill cancel out Watford’s lead completely and then a red card for Malky Mackay for kicking out at Rob Kozluk. Lo and behold, the ten men could not hold on. United completed a famous comeback thanks to a late own goal by Clarke Carlisle.
This topsy-turvy turnaround was a microcosm of the Watford season. Roller-coaster runs of form was a trademark: six without a victory followed the seven game unbeaten streak. Another five wins on the bounce was then bookended by four straight draws. Watford won eight of nine matches during January and February, then picked up one win in the next seven. It was feast or famine.
The inability to quickly get out of sticky patches ultimately cost the Hornets a place in the automatic promotion spots. It was also an indication that Boothroyd didn’t quite have the tactical system to fall back on when times were tough.
The moment that something went against the team, a la the Sheffield United game, they were prone to collapse and struggled to turn the tide.
Conversely, when confidence was high, Boothroyd had the motivational manpower to inspire phenomenal performances: see the 4-1 triumph in the reverse fixture at Bramall Lane as evidence of this.
Ending up nine points behind the Blades in third, Crystal Palace were the play-off semi-final opponents for Boothroyd’s charges. Despite Watford’s superior league finish, most fancied the Eagles to have too much for the surprise package of the season across the two legs, particularly as Iain Dowie’s Palace had run out comfortable winners when the sides met at Selhurst Park a month earlier.
As ever in SE25, the atmosphere for the first leg was ferocious. Not to be cowed by their surroundings, the Watford XI lined up on the halfway line almost as though they were facing up to an All Black Haka prior to kick-off. Captain Gavin Mahon barked encouragement at his troops as they took to their positions. Boothroyd’s boys were up for the battle.
And battle they did during the first 45 minutes. Ben Foster denied Jobi McAnuff with an excellent near post save, Andrew Johnson dragged a clear chance past the far post and Clinton Morrison curled a delicate effort just wide.
For all their resilience, Watford were being overrun in midfield. At half-time Boothroyd hauled off the ineffectual Darius Henderson for the club’s young player of the year, Al Bangura of Sierra Leone - a combative box-to-box midfielder who could cover the left hand side, allowing Young to push into a more central attacking position.
The switch worked like a dream.
Within 60 seconds of the restart, Marlon King had put Watford in front.
The Championship top scorer pinned his marker after a long punt down the field by Foster, brought the ball under control with his knee, swivelled and hit a snapped shot with his left foot across the tracksuit-bottomed Hungarian ‘keeper, Gábor Király. There was a smack off the inside of the far post as the ball flew back across the goalmouth and into the opposite side netting.
Completely against the run of play, it was 1-0 to Watford. A classic sucker punch - and Palace never recovered.
Another set piece special from Young doubled the lead midway through the second period and then the winger turned provider, teeing up Matthew Spring to hammer in a third with five minutes remaining, all but confirming Watford’s place in the play-off final.
“Duh duh duh duhh, Aidy Boothroyd!” reverberated around the ground from the away end. Watford were in dreamland.
A goalless draw in the second leg was just what the doctor ordered. No thrills, no spills, Cardiff here we come.
Their opponents at Millennium Stadium? None other than Leeds United.
Boothroyd, born in Eccleshill in West Yorkshire, less than 10 miles from Elland Road; against Blackwell, born in Luton, less than 18 from Vicarage Road. The master versus the apprentice. The stage could not have been better set.
With 64,000 fans creating a cacophony of noise under the closed roof, the two managers shared a joke and a smile as they led the players out of the tunnel.
The battered and bruised pitch, a direct result of the Heineken Cup Final just 24 hours prior, suited the no-nonsense style of play that Boothroyd preferred and also nullified the passing threat that Leeds possessed. Steadily, the Hornets began to take control.
On the 25 minute mark, they took the lead.
Again, it involved the magical right foot of Young, who delivered an inswinging corner with pace and accuracy from the left. Meeting the ball at the back post was the frosted tips of Jay DeMerit. The defensive unit hailing from Green Bay hurled himself at the pigskin as any good wide receiver should. Touchdown! One to zero, What Ford!
Much like Palace in the semi, Leeds huffed and puffed, but they could not blow down the house that Boothroyd built. Instead, the advantage was extended just before the hour.
Mahon launched a long throw into the Leeds box. Two players from each team climbed at the near post. The soaring orb was diverted towards the penalty spot, landing at the feet of James Chambers, who stabbed an awkward shot into the turf. Neil Sullivan desperately scrambled across his line as the effort ballooned up off a slight deflection and then dropped towards the far corner. Sullivan’s full length dive just wasn’t enough as the ball struck the foot of the post, bounced back off his midriff, and then trickled agonisingly over the line.
Delirium in the Watford end. They could almost taste the sweet nectar of the Premier League already.
Promotion was eventually sealed after Shaun Derry tripped King in the penalty area following a swift counter attack, allowing Henderson to convert from the spot for 3-0.
Boothroyd had taken over a ragtag bunch destined for the drop and brought them to the promised land in the space of 15 months. His stock could not have been higher… and it would never be from that moment on.
If the Boothroyd ascent was sharp, the descent was dull in comparison.
The following year in the Premier League was a major reality check. It took until November for Watford to register their first win - one of only five throughout the entire campaign. They finished rock bottom and immediately returned to the Championship.
Boothroyd’s direct, aggressive tactics ultimately proved to be no match for their technically superior opponents. It didn’t help matters when Marlon King, the club’s player of the year in their promotion season, sustained a significant knee injury which sidelined him for six months from October to April. The departure of Ashley Young to Aston Villa for £8m in January further weakened the cause.
The Hornets did reach the semi-final stage of the FA Cup that season, but they were humbled 4-1 by Manchester United at Villa Park when they got there.
Life back in the second tier began brilliantly for Boothroyd.
Watford won 11 of their first 15 games and were eight points clear at the top of the table when they beat Norwich City at Carrow Road in November. Another promotion looked a given.
As with bygone seasons though, the moment one small crack appeared on the windscreen, the whole thing shattered. A succession of defeats to Barnsley, Burnley and Bristol City blew Boothroyd’s boys backwards and from there they were unable to bounce back.
With the other clubs now fully aware of Boothroyd’s style of play, Watford were effectively found out. Despite only recording one victory in their last 14 matches, the Hornets scraped into the play-offs in sixth position, only to be stuffed 6-1 on aggregate by Hull City across the two legs.
The board stood behind Boothroyd that summer, promising a rebuild and a reinvention of the playing style, but their patience only lasted until the following November. Floundering one position above the relegation zone after conceding four at home to Blackpool as the team tried in vain to adapt to the new expansive tactics, Boothroyd was relieved of his duties “by mutual consent”.
Substandard stints at Colchester United, Coventry City and Northampton Town followed for Boothroyd. He departed English league football in 2013 with his Cobblers side bottom of League Two. In the decade since, he has never been back.
Maybe he could be accused of being guilty of the Icarus complex. Clearly a man of principle, he always spoke a good game about his ethos and his values and he certainly didn’t lack ambition, but ultimately his reluctance to change his approach proved his downfall. The “Aidy Hoofroyd” tag stuck with him for a reason.
All great managers are stubborn in their views, but perhaps the rise and fall of Boothroyd is a lesson in self-awareness and flexibility.
But, who knows? Football is cyclical and maybe in another 10 years’ time Booth-ball will be all the rage.
I guess we’ll have to wait and see on that one.
This article was written by James Ablett and published first on www.kanubelieveit.com on 6 August 2023.
Opmerkingen