Gabriele Angella has credited former Watford manager Slavisa Jokanovic for stopping the rot and masterminding Watford’s promotion to the Premier League following his appointment in October 2014.

The promotion odds were stacked against Watford prior to the Serb’s appointment with the club in free fall and in managerial turmoil, despite a bright start to the season.

With retrospect Angella believes that Jokanovic, who had become the fourth manager in charge in only two months, worked wonders by bringing composure and restoring confidence in the players.

“That season, we got off to a flyer under (Giuseppe) Sannino and were second in the table after only six matches, winning five of them and losing only once," he said.

“But then Sannino’s sudden and unexplained decision to walk away left us players deflated and the whole club in a mayhem for a while. To top it all, Sannino did not disclose any reasons for terminating his contract and walking away.

“It was a difficult year because we changed four different managers. We had Sannino and two other managers along the way, who only stayed for a very brief period of time. One of them stepped down because he was taken ill (Oscar Garcia) and Billy McKinlay. I don’t even know why the club appointed and relieved him of his duties so quickly.

“To compound matters, Watford also had to deal with a growing list of injuries at that time. Troy Deeney, Almen Abdi and I suffered injury setbacks at the same time, which was a big blow for the entire club. All three of us spent a month and a half on the sidelines, which did not help Watford’s case, with the club further slipping down the table.

“Then Jokanovic took over and did a great job in bringing stability and serenity to the club. He really steadied the ship. His man-management skills and know-how got us back on track. This eventually culminated in Premier League promotion."

The Italian defender admitted that every club needs a bit of good fortune to get over the line and that Watford were no different that season. But he believes that the abundance of talent in the squad coupled with the players’ determination to bounce back and not to let themselves get affected by the previous disastrous campaign were other key factors as to why the club returned to the Premier League after eight years.

“The fact that we did not give up after the first year when we finished 12th despite building a more than capable squad to challenge for promotion was the defining moment for achieving promotion a year later, and for me personally, the best memory of my Watford time.

“A year later, thanks also to the fact that we had not suffered the repercussions of the preceding season, we finally managed to get promoted to the Premier League. That was a very emotional moment.

“We shall however not forget that there was a lot of quality in that team and anyone of us was very single-minded and worked towards achieving our main goal. Yet, the campaign was not a straightforward march to promotion.

“We went through rough patches even with Jokanovic (the club lost all its games in the month of November). But from memory we were seventh in the table by Christmas and then, thanks to the momentum we built, we went on a great run which culminated in promotion.”

The Italian centre-half enjoyed his finest career hours in that campaign as his tenacity, his ability to play out from the back and tactical intelligence helped the Hornets to a second-place finish and automatic promotion.

Yet the 30-year old has defended himself against criticism over his failure to deliver since leaving Watford, pointing out that it’s hard for any footballer to shine if not given the opportunity to do so on a regular basis.

“In my career, at whatever club I have been and was given the chance to play regularly, I always managed to showcase my worth. There’s no doubt about that. Yet when that isn’t the case, you cannot show what you are capable of because it’s hard to be at your best when you are being used sparingly by the manager, one game yes, one game no.

“How is a player supposed to shine with a lack of regular game time? I am of the opinion that in my career wherever I had the chance to play consistently I excelled. At a strong team like Udinese, I made 14 appearances scoring four goals…but the fact that I wasn’t a regular starter and did not get much game time made everything harder for me. At Watford I played an integral part in us getting promoted and even scored eight league goals in the process, and that as a defender. Why? Because I played.

“Consistency was key and the reason I shone at Watford. Last season at Charleroi in Belgium I started 26 games and was 11 or 12 times selected in the Jupiler Pro League’s Team of the Week. The reason? I played.

“To put it plainly, it all comes down to continuity and I think that wherever I have been and played, I did well.”