OFFICIAL: Nick Cox departure announced

Watford`s Head of Academy Nick Cox is to depart the club at the end of November with his current deputy Chris McGuane stepping up to takeover.

Cox has been at Watford for 11 years in a number of roles, working his way up from coaching in the community initiatives to overseeing the development of youngsters at the Harefield Academy, a position he has held for two years now.

Speaking to Watfordfc.com Cox said: "Working at Watford is the perfect football upbringing.

"I`m very proud of my time at the club and particularly the role I played in creating and developing The Harefield Academy partnership, something which is still unique in English football.

During his time within the club`s academy setup, Cox oversaw the development of any number of highly-rated young prospects, most recently including the likes of Britt Assombalonga, Connor Smith, Sean Murray and Tommie Hoban.

And, in his farewell message to Hornet`s supporters, Cox was adamant that the club`s development of the next generation is in safe hands.

I`m leaving behind an excellent group of staff. With Chris [McGuane] stepping into the role, the Academy is in very capable hands.

"You won`t find people better at serving young people anywhere, and I thank them for their unswerving support during my time serving the club."

The news comes after the club elected to apply for Category 3 status under the Elite Player Peformance Plan (EPPP) earlier this year, despite originally applying for Category 1 status under the previous ownership regime.

Head of the Pozzo family`s English branch, Gino, as well as CEO Scott Duxbury and Technical Director Gian Luca Nani have all been quick to re-assure the Hornet`s faithful that this change will not have a negative impact on the club`s continued focus on the development of home-grown talent.

Speaking to the Official Site, Nani spoke of the decision: "I am very sorry to see Nick go but I fully respect his decision - just as I fully respect all of his achievements with the Watford Academy.

"As I said at the Fans Forum recently, it is an amazing set-up. You only have to look at the current first-team squad to see how highly the Academy here is thought of."

Everyone at Vital Watford wishes Nick the very best of luck in the future in whatever project he decides to embark on and would like to take this opportunity to thank and congratulate him on an incredibly successful 11 years at the Football Club.

Click here to join in the debate on the club forum.