Walter Mazzarri aims parting dig at 'unambitious' Watford

Outgoing Watford manager Walter Mazzarri has insisted that the club 'do not match his ambitions', putting his sacking down to an unfortunate list of injury absentees.

The 55-year-old was given his marching orders earlier this week and will leave after Sunday's final game of the season at home to Manchester City.

Mazzarri is happy that he achieved what he set out to at Vicarage Road by keeping the club in the Premier League, but says that things could have turned out much differently had it not been for injuries.

"We had some problems but we achieved our target of safety and beat Arsenal, Manchester United and Everton," he told reporters. "Unfortunately, when all was going well and we were in seventh place in the table, we had this incredible glut of injuries.

"Watford do not have the same ambitions, the same mentality as the other clubs I have worked with. I tried to instil a winning mentality here but that was not possible."

Claudio Ranieri, Marco Silva, Stefano Pioli and Leonid Slutsky are all reportedly in the frame to replace Mazzarri in the summer.