Dean Whitehead, a former Sunderland midfielder, has revealed that he has left Watford following the departure of head coach Valerien Ismael.

Whitehead joined the Hornets as an assistant head coach in June of last year, after coaching stints at Huddersfield and Cardiff, having previously worked with Ismael at Turkish club Besiktas.

However, following Saturday’s 2-1 defeat to Coventry, Watford confirmed that they had parted ways with Ismael, ending a record of only one win in 10 games. Whitehead and assistant coach Omar Riza will depart the club, with former player Tom Cleverley serving as acting head coach.

Whitehead responded to the news by tweeting, “Thank you @WatfordFC, loved my time here, met so many really good people, disappointed to leave.” Good luck to everyone in the club.”

Whitehead made 199 appearances for Sunderland from 2004 to 2009 before joining Stoke City. Later in his career, he represented Middlesbrough and Huddersfield Town.

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