Gino needs to give panic button a rest

REAL deal or false dawn? It's a question Watford supporters are asking for the umpteenth time after thrashing QPR on the opening day.

- Chris Dunlavy

So much of what happened at Vicarage Road was positive. The performance of playmaker Imran Louza. The flashes of skill from Gent loanee Giorgi Chakvetadze, a Georgian international and instant cult hero. Four goals, chances created at will.

Watford played with a cohesion and commitment that was entirely absent during last year's disjointed descent into mediocrity. Gareth Ainsworth, the beaten QPR manager, told reporters that his team had lost to potential champions.

A cynic might argue that QPR could make anyone look like potential champions but, cheap digs aside, it's important to remember who we are talking about here.

Watford are football's answer to Nick Kyrgios, the Australian tennis player whose extravagant talent is matched only by his emotional volatility. He might win Wimbledon. He might get disqualified in the first round. It really depends what's going on upstairs.

Likewise, it would appear that Watford are scudding along nicely under Valerien Ismael, the former Barnsley boss who took charge in May. They have the players, and the cash.