Watford has sacked manager Marco Silva, blaming Everton’s approach for the Portuguese in November as the “catalyst for this decision”.
The Hornets have won one of their last 11 Premier League games and are 10th in the table, five points above relegation after Saturday’s 2-0 loss at Leicester.
Spaniard Javi Gracia is expected to be named as Silva’s replacement this week.
Gracia, 47, left Russian club Rubin Kazan in June after a 10-year coaching career in his homeland and in Greece,
He will become the 10th manager to work at the club under the Pozzo family since 2012.
In a statement, Watford said they were “convinced” that 40-year-old Silva’s appointment in May “was the right one” and, without “the unwarranted approach” they would have “continued to prosper”.
“This has been a difficult decision and one not taken lightly,” the club added.
“The catalyst is that approach, something which the board believes has seen a significant deterioration in both focus and results to the point where the long-term future of Watford has been jeopardised.”
Everton has yet to respond.
Silva has become the eighth Premier League manager to lose his job this season following changes at Crystal Palace, Everton, Leicester City, Stoke, Swansea, West Brom and West Ham.
