Flores: Survival still the aim for high flying Watford

Quique Sanchez Flores insists Watford’s aim remains to stay in the Premier League – despite sitting in the top half of the table.

Watford were expected to struggle after a massive turnover of players since winning promotion from the Championship – while Flores also took over as manager from Slaviša Jokanović.

However, following the 2-0 victory over Norwich City on Saturday, the club are nine points above the relegation zone in 10th place, but the 50-year-old is refusing to get carried away.

“The objective is the same; to stay in the division. That way we can grow a lot in the future,” Flores said.

“The sum of the points we have now is very nice, it’s giving a lot of confidence to the players but we need to keep on. It’s very important we don’t change, so at the moment it’s necessary to keep the target.”

The Spaniard also took time to praise summer signing Etienne Capoue’s impressive form for the club.

Capoue struggled at Tottenham last season but has flourished since joining the Hornets for a club record £6.3million.

“For me he is one of the best midfielders in the league in terms of the quality he’s showing this season,” Flores said.

“The most important thing for a midfielder is the capacity to control the midfield. Capoue in every performance is a very, very expensive, very, very important player….physically, technically and mentally. We are very happy with Capoue.”