When Watford appointed Claudio Ranieri as manager in October, their aim was to stop the "negative trend" they had identified in performances and avoid the prospect of a Premier League relegation battle.
The club's owners, the Pozzo family, are famed for their ruthless dealings with managers. Ranieri is their 10th appointment in seven years and his predecessor, Spaniard Xisco Munoz, was sacked with the Hornets 14th in the table having collected seven points from their opening seven games.
Three months on and, following Saturday's 1-1 draw with fellow strugglers Newcastle, Watford are a point above the bottom three.