- Pedro Obiang was signed by Watford manager Walter Mazzarri for Sampdoria at the age of 16
- Midfielder says Italian sought his advice before taking the top job at Vicarage Road last summer
- No14 is also looking forward to meeting former teammate and friend Mauro Zarate
Pedro Obiang should not be surprised by Watford’s tactics at Vicarage Road on Saturday.
Hornets manager Walter Mazzarri signed the then 16-year-old midfielder for Italian club Sampdoria back in summer 2008, immediately adding the young Spaniard to his first-team squad.
So impressed was Mazzarri with Obiang’s potential that he named the teenaged midfielder on the substitutes’ bench for two Serie A fixtures in January 2009 – still two months short of his 17th birthday.
Eight years on and both men are now plying their trade in the Premier League, with West Ham United’s in-form midfielder revealing that Mazzarri had sought his advice before following him to England last summer.
I know Walter Mazzarri very well, as he was my first manager in Sampdoria when I was 16, 17, so I know him and he knows me
Pedro Obiang
“I know Mister Mazzarri well,” the No14 told whufc.com. “I met him last summer and he told me he was going to Watford. He told me he didn’t speak English, but I told him not to worry because I didn’t speak English when I arrived at West Ham, either!
“He is an Italian coach and wants to talk about tactics and normally this would be a problem because he speaks only Italian, but many of his players also speak Italian, so while it is still difficult for him to communicate with all his squad, he can do so either directly or through a translator.
“Watford are not so much of an offensive team, as they normally try to defend, but they have important strikers and can cause you pain. We are a good team, too, and we want to demonstrate that our defeat at home to Watford was a mistake.
“We need some points because we lost two important points in the last game at home to West Brom, so we need to take three points from this game.”
After a decent playing career, Mazzarri started out as a coach with Napoli in 1998 before taking his first managerial role with Sicilian Serie C2 club Acireale in 2001. He then took a seat in the dugout at Pistoiese, Livorno and Reggina prior to his aforementioned two-year spell with Sampdoria between 2007 and 2009.
After leaving the Stadio Luigi Ferraris, Mazzarri guided Napoli to second in Serie A and Coppa Italia glory before spending the 2013/14 season with Internazionale. In July 2016, he was appointed manager of Watford by the club’s Italian owner, Gino Pozzo.
Obiang has been impressed with his former mentor’s start to life in English football and offered his observations on how Mazzarri likes his teams to play.
“He likes to always play with the same system, 3-5-2, and we arrived sixth in Serie A and reached the Coppa Italia final when he was in Sampdoria, while he also arrived in second place and won the Coppa Italia with Napoli,” he observed.
“Tactically he is good, like most Italian managers. He doesn’t like to take a lot of risks, though, so maybe that will be good for us.
“Personality-wise, he was good for us. He didn’t talk to the players too much, because his assistant Nicolo Frustalupi, who is with him always, is a good person who likes to laugh and talk and demonstrate things, like Edin [Terzic] does here at West Ham.
“It’s a good experience for them here in England, because it is not easy to come here and be good in the first year.”
The midfielder revealed how the Argentine helped him to settle into life in east London, and even admitted he would not begrudge Zarate a goal on Saturday, as long as West Ham win the game!
“Mauro is our friend and we miss him! I want to tell him not to score on Saturday because we are friends, but if he does score I am happy for him because this is football and I know he is a good player and a good person,” Obiang smiled. “He has changed team and this is a chance for him to demonstrate that.
“Mauro is a good guy with a beautiful family and when I came to West Ham he and Adrian helped me with everything. We went to dinner together and so, for me, he is a good boy!”