EDDIE Howe felt the furore surrounding Watford’s links with Udinese last season had overshadowed the “excellent job” carried out by boss Gianfranco Zola.

Zola, appointed in July 2012, guided the Hornets to the Championship play-off final against a backdrop of controversy regarding their use of foreign loan players.

Watford took advantage of a loophole by signing no fewer than 10 players on loan from Serie A outfit Udinese, with both clubs owned by the Pozzo family.

Their use of the system circumvented Football League rules which restricted matchday squads to five domestic loan players and was the subject of much criticism.

Watford – operating under a transfer embargo until the end of this month due to their previous owners’ financial irregularities – were able to exceed the quota as overseas loans were regarded as full transfers.

The rules have now been changed after all 72 Football League clubs – including the Hornets – voted to bring international loan regulations in line with domestic ones at the league’s AGM in June.

Watford last month completed the permanent signings of eight players from Udinese, together with two from Spanish outfit Granada, another club owned by the Pozzos.

All 10 players were named in the Watford squad for their Championship opener at Birmingham six days ago and are expected to be included against Cherries on Saturday.

Howe, who had returned to Dean Court by the time previous club Burnley drew both games with Watford last season, told the Daily Echo: “I wasn’t directly involved because my focus was purely on us and our division. Perhaps if I had stayed in the Championship, I might have had a different viewpoint.

“Watford were creative with the rules and found a loophole to serve them well. I am not going to get too politically involved in it. Fair play to them because they had a great season and played some excellent football, which is probably the most important point to make.

“Gianfranco Zola has done an excellent job in building a football team that follows his philosophy and I believe they will be one of the front-runners again this season because they have improved their squad and will be even better.

“They did what they felt was best. The rules were set for every club and they found a way around them. I am not going to stand here and take the moral high ground and say this club shouldn’t be doing this and that club shouldn’t be doing that. It is none of my business.”

Howe revealed Cherries had tried to find ways around their transfer embargo during his first spell at the club – a bar which prevented them signing the likes of Charlie Austin, Steve Lovell and Lewis Smith.

“You either do that or you suffer so you have to try to be creative,” said Howe. “At the time, we were thinking of every weird and wonderful way to try to recruit one player just to try to give us a chance to be more successful.

“It is human nature because you want success and you want it as much as you can. I have got no issue with anything Watford have done or do because, ultimately, it is nothing to do with me.”

Watford, beaten by Crystal Palace in the Championship play-off final, opened their campaign with a 1-0 win at Birmingham before seeing off Bristol Rovers in the League Cup in midweek.

Howe said: “The way last season finished for them would have been heart-breaking with all the effort they put. The way they eventually lost out in the play-offs would have hurt them.

“Full credit to them though because they won their first game which is always a tough examination of your character. Knowing the team and the manager, they will be competitive again with their unique style and I think that is what will make the game very tough for us. We will just have to try to combat their strengths and exploit their weaknesses, like we try to do with every team.”

And Amersham-born Howe added: “Watford is a special ground for me because it was the first professional stadium I went to as a child. I was brought up in Chesham and watched the great side of the 1980s, managed by Graham Taylor and including players like John Barnes. It will be nice to go back to Vicarage Road.”

WATFORD v AFC BOURNEMOUTH - SQUADS

Cherries: (from) Allsop, Francis, Ward, Cook, Daniels, Coulibaly, Arter, MacDonald, Pugh, Grabban, Thomas, Surman, Pitman, Fraser, Elphick, Hughes, O’Kane, Harte, McDermott, Addison, Flahavan.

Hornets: (from) Almunia, Doyley, Angella, Cassetti, Faraoni, Iriney, McGugan, Abdi, Anya, Deeney, Forestieri, Battocchio, Pudil, Fabbrini, Bond, Ekstrand, Acuna, Smith.

WATFORD v AFC BOURNEMOUTH – DID YOU KNOW?

  • Watford are fifth in Cherries’ most-played league list. The teams have met 94 times in the league and there is nothing between them with 34 wins apiece and 26 draws. 
  • Cherries had been due to host Watford in the opening Football League match at Dean Court on Wednesday, August 29 1923 but the game was postponed at late notice after a thunderstorm had waterlogged the pitch.
  • Watford was Cherries’ second away game in the Football League and it finished in a 0-0 draw on September 5 1923. A fortnight later, the teams battled out a 1-1 draw at Dean Court Cherries played Watford every season in their first 28 years in the Football League, winning 10 times in Division Three (South) at Vicarage Road.
  • In their first season in the Football League (1923-24), Cherries had to apply for re-election and Watford had been one of their main rivals. On the final day, Cherries managed to beat Charlton at Catford but Watford’s 0-0 draw against Brighton saw the Hornets finish ahead of them on goal average. But second-from-bottom Cherries were re-elected.
  • In 1957, the Football League decided to form a fourth division, which was introduced in 1958-59. As a result, the clubs went their separate ways after Cherries finished ninth and Watford 16th, meaning the Hornets went into the newly-formed Division Four and Cherries stayed in Division Three.
  • Cherries met the Hornets in their second and third seasons in the second tier in 1988-89 and 1989-90.
  • The last league meetings between the teams were in 1996-97 and 1997-98. Cherries won 1-0 at Vicarage Road in 96-97 thanks to an Ian Cox goal and lost 2-1 in Hertfordshire in April 98.
  • Saturday is the first meeting between the teams for 10 years when Scott Fitzgerald’s extra-time goal earned the Hornets a 1-0 win at Vicarage Road in the League Cup. Current Cherries backroom staff Steve Fletcher, Stephen Purches, Neil Moss and Jason Tindall were in the Cherries squad.