Watford’s Rey Manaj: Signed from Barcelona after cutting his teeth under Mancini and Gattuso
Rey Manaj walked past the last-minute duty-free outlets with his girlfriend before emerging into the bright lights and bustle of the Heathrow Terminal 5 arrivals area. The pair had travelled light as they knew their initial trip to London was going to be a short one. It was just after 2:30 pm on Tuesday, July 5, and they searched along the brushed chrome iron rail that separated those fresh from travel and those waiting to greet them. Their eyes caught the whiteboard with “Mr Manaj” scrawled in black ink and plotted a route to a waiting chauffeur. They met, exchanged pleasantries, but they didn’t instantly walk off towards the car. Instead, they had to wait. The couple had just flown in from Milan but Manaj’s representatives were on another flight arriving from Malaga, Spain, 20 minutes later. The information was passed on to the driver, who smiled politely and found a pillar to lean on. Manaj decided, to kill time, that they’d join the queue at a Costa Coffee branch. Once post-flight refreshments had been gathered from the glass window, The Athletic grabbed a quick word with Manaj, who explained that he was here to have a look around — he pointed to his eye to save any miscommunication — at the Watford training ground and to meet owner Gino Pozzo to learn about “the project”. The 25-year-old, who spoke with good English, outlined a few other clubs that he was considering too. Getafe in La Liga was mentioned and a number of Serie A sides also rolled off the tongue. Watford had been presented as an option the previous weekend. Then, the decision had been made a day earlier that he would fly out to move a step closer to a next chapter in his career. Within the space of a week, it was agreed that he would sign a three-year contract at Watford. Barcelona wouldn’t receive an initial fee but they would have a “right of first refusal and a 50 per cent of any future sale”, they explained in a statement. It’s understood add-ons were factored in to the deal, including a payment to Barcelona via add-ons if promotion to the Premier League is achieved in the next two years. The reason Manaj was on a reconnaissance mission with an opportunity for a new start was, in effect, because Spezia, where he’d spent the 2021-22 season and worn the No 9 shirt , hadn’t taken up an option to sign him for £2.2 million by the end of his loan deal on June 30. Spezia had paid a loan fee of £250,000 to Barcelona and covered Manaj’s wages for the campaign, but they were looking elsewhere for attacking options. In 30 matches (starting 19), Manaj scored five goals (including two penalties), which fell short of his expected goals (xG) tally of 7.9 (a non-penalty goal xG of 5.5 ). The striker’s three goals that didn’t come from the spot were close-range efforts: one inside the six-yard box, two just outside. He created 13 chances for his team-mates but didn’t register an assist. Manaj’s one shot from the halfway line came against Napoli but a deflection just as it left his boot spoiled the fun. Reasons related to performances on the field and circumstances off it contributed to Spezia (who finished 16th, six points above the relegation zone) ultimately deciding not to retain Manaj. While the Albania international was a solid performer, he wasn’t outstanding and his decision-making let him down at times. Although his output was underwhelming, there was an uplift as the season progressed and Manaj became more settled in northern Italy. After one goal in his first 16 games, he scored four in his final 14 appearances. Off the field, Spezia were given a four-window transfer ban last summer for breaching FIFA rules on signing under-18s, which meant they were unable to bring in any new players. It came into force after Manaj had signed and prevented them doing business in January. The Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) upheld their appeal against FIFA last month, which changed their recruitment picture and freed them up to trade as they wished again. It meant they didn’t need to be wedded to their option — which they would have been entitled to take up even with the ban — to sign Manaj.
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