WATFORD, England — English Premier League team Watford on Saturday appointed Walter Mazzarri as its new head coach on a three-year contract, starting July 1.
The 54-year-old Italian, whose previous clubs include Inter Milan, Sampdoria and Napoli, replaces Quique Sanchez Flores, who departed after what the Spaniard called a conflict of views over the team’s achievements in his first year in charge.
Watford was promoted from the second-tier League Championship last season and secured its survival in the lucrative Premier League with ease — finishing 13th with 45 points after a slump in the second half of the season — and reached the semifinals of the FA Cup, losing to Crystal Palace.
Mazzarri is the Hornets’ eighth manager in the last four years.
"We’re thoroughly looking forward to working with such a highly-regarded coach, with the progress and development of the club always remaining the highest priority," Watford chief executive Scott Duxbury told the club’s official website.
Mazzarri, who has been out of work since leaving Inter in 2014, reached the Coppa Italia final with both Sampdoria and Napoli, while also leading Napoli to second place in Serie A in 2012-13.