'If the lads hate me on the pitch then so be it' - Pollock on leadership style

Mattie Pollock says he is prepared for Watford players to hate him if it means pushing them on the pitch - but hopes "there isn't one person who wouldn't come and have a coffee with me afterwards".

In a video released by the club after officially announcing the 24-year-old as the new club captain, Pollock was open about his leadership style and his ambition.

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The defender hopes to instigate a culture shift as he takes hold of the Hornets' dressing room and says he is conscious of reconnecting the team to the fans.

That starts with pulling the team in the right direction.

He said: "For the last few years, especially under Clevs [Tom Cleverley} when I stepped up as vice-captain a couple of times, I like to drive standards.

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"I like to push people, if the lads hate me on the football pitch then so be it, that's just going to have to be the way.

"But off the pitch I'd like to say there wouldn't be one person who wouldn't come and have a coffee with me afterwards, that's my role.

"Ultimately my ambition is to take the club back where it should be."

Pollock is set to enter his sixth season on Watford's books, going on something of a personal journey having hit a low point when he badly struggled in a 3-0 defeat to Millwall in October 2022.

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Not many would have had him down as a future club captain that night, but his development as a player and character supporters can genuinely associate with has been striking since.

He said: "This is my football club. I've been here for five years and I've done a tour of Hertfordshire having lived all over.

"I've met people, I've learned about the club, what it actually means to be from Watford and I think the fans have really enjoyed the 100% effort I try to give.

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"That's me, that's the job I have to do, to give everything I've got and the rest will hopefully follow.

"It's probably a bit of a story, it not quite working out to where we are now, club captain, and the fans have been there every minute."

Pollock hopes the squad is filled with more players who throw themselves into life at the club this summer.

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He said: "Now we need players who know the club, know what the club and the fans want.

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"It's not rocket science. We need hard workers, we have a lot of young lads here with so much quality and we need a little bit more experience, a bit of a helping hand.

"It doesn't have to be the flashiest players, it's hard work and I think the club know that. I think they are doing the right things and I'm as excited as every fan to see who we bring in and how we can start the season."

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