It would have been all too easy for Roy Hodgson to slip into retirement and enjoy a comfortable life taking in football matches from the comfort of his own home. But, to those who know and have worked with him, his return comes as little surprise.
After all, he is the master of the great escape - a survival specialist in every sense of the term. Across his lengthy and storied career in the game, he has set down solid foundations and looked to build on them - often leading to him beating the drop.
Fulham, Crystal Palace and, to a lesser extent, West Brom can attest to that. His philosophy is built around quickly establishing some much needed stability across the spine of his team, while also allowing for attackers to showcase their flair.
Roy Hodgson has stepped back into management once again in an attempt to rescue Watford
Watford are languishing in 19th spot, two points off safety, after their 3-0 defeat by Norwich
Along the way, he will organise his troops, methodically and meticulously. While a coach often accused of allowing for boring and stunted football, Hodgson gets results, there is no denying that. At Watford, the pressure is on right from the off.
He has been known to repeat sessions over and over again, until the building blocks of his blueprint are almost muscle memory for his players. From there, they will be taught about his patterns of play, day after day, until he is eventually satisfied.
It is no surprise, then, that his teams are often a difficult watch. But the bottom line for his current brief is that getting points on the board is king and, judging by his first training session, his bid to repeat his previous heroics is already in full swing.
Hodgson has never been relegated from the Premier League, and has put this record at risk
Alongside his trusty lieutenant Ray Lewington (R), Hodgson will take his players back to basics
Watford posted a montage of Hodgson training up his squad at their base on the day he took charge and there was nothing to shock supporters. Ray Lewington was equally hands-on, with the veteran duo taking their players back through the basics.
This will surely be a welcome approach, and likely the best way for the crisis-stricken club to rediscover their confidence as they bid to pull away from the relegation dogfight. After all, it has worked before, so why would the 74-year-old change now?
Back in December 2007, a slightly more fresh-faced Hodgson took over at Craven Cottage, with Fulham languishing in 18th position and facing up to another season in the Championship. At the time, though, they were just two points from safety.
The fact they had won just two games in the Premier League laid bare the task facing Hodgson, but he set about the job in typical fashion. Back came the fundamentals, the attitude improved and, slowly but surely, the fanbase came back onside.
After taking charge at Fulham in December 2007, Hodgson helped his new club avoid the drop
His heroics at Craven Cottage soon saw him form a close connection with the club's fanbase
Miraculously, he managed to piece together a run of 12 points from the final five games of the campaign - including a 3-2 victory over Manchester City. Having been two goals down with time ticking down, their fighting spirit burst to the surface.
This superb form ensured their survival, and a 1-0 win over Portsmouth on the final day of the 2007-08 season wrapped up mission impossible. Hodgson wasn't done there, too, as he eventually took Fulham to the Europa League final two years on.
In his two seasons there, the club finished seventh and 12th, and came close to securing glory on the continent in the second. He later departed for Liverpool, where his way of working came undone and he was sacked after a horror run.
Even that wasn't enough to force him out of the game. Just a month later, Hodgson took the
