Marco Silva eager for his Watford squad to speak English in training after former boss Walter Mazzarri and his staff failed to grasp the language

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New Watford manager Marco Silva is insisting all of his squad speak English on the training ground to prevent the major communication issues of last season.

Former manager Walter Mazzarri and his Italian team of staff caused confusion around the training ground with their poor English. 

Messages to the players often had to be relayed by individual players in different languages and they could sometimes struggle to understand his methods.

New Watford manager Marco Silva wants his squad to speak English on the training ground

Walter Mazzarri and his Italian staff caused confusion in training with their poor English

Mazzarri, who joined Watford last summer, was criticised for not learning the language and was even accompanied by a translator on his final match in charge.

Silva, 40, only took his first job in England when he joined Hull City in January, where he impressed enough to earn a move to Watford despite his inability to keep Hull in the Premier League, but conducted his unveiling press conference on Thursday in excellent English.

‘The main language is English,’ he said. 'I’ve come here to speak English. Normally I talk in front of everyone in English. Sometimes I need to speak to Spanish players a bit in Spanish but that is not perfect.’

Star striker Troy Deeney has had surgery on a groin injury and Silva admitted that Watford’s captain, while not out long-term, is unlikely to be fit for their opening Premier League game against Liverpool. 

‘The first match is not easy, and maybe unavailable for the first match,’ Silva said. ‘We will see day by day, he improves day by day.’ 

Striker Troy Deeney is likely to miss Watford's opening Premier League match with Liverpool