Cleverley anticipates Hull City’s ‘new manager bounce’ ahead of Watford clash

Watford, managed by Tom Cleverley, has secured only two away victories in the Championship this season. Watford manager Tom Cleverley anticipates heightened motivation among Hull City’s players for their Championship encounter on Wednesday night. This fixture will mark the debut of Hull City’s new head coach, Ruben Selles, who took over from Tim Walter last week. Cleverley stated during his pre-match press conference: “I believe in the new manager bounce – it’s something which happens in football and in life I suppose when you’re trying to impress somebody new, it can certainly get an extra 10% out of the players.” He added, “When I got the job here our results got better and that’s not patting me on the back – it’s a thing in football and it’s our job to put a lid on that on Wednesday evening.” Watford’s scheduled match against Cardiff City on Saturday was postponed due to Storm Darragh, and Cleverley emphasized the importance of utilizing this extended break as they prepare to confront an opponent potentially employing a revised strategy under their new head coach. Cleverley remarked, “We’ve had three days to prepare, so it’s been a little bit strange but we have to look like the team who are fresher and it’s been a little bit of respite from the playing side of things.” He further noted, “You go over things from his [Selles] previous club – we played Reading in pre-season with Ruben as their manager and I was impressed with his team and he’s a coach I have massive respect for.”