Watford defender Fitz Hall is "an extraordinary guy" according to Hornets head coach Beppe Sannino, who saw the 33-year-old in competitive action for the first time against Bristol City on Tuesday night.

Hall's last appearance for the Golden Boys had been against Sheffield Wednesday on December 14 but he re-signed with the club for a third time after agreeing another one-month contract earlier this month.

Sannino has previously described Hall's personality and presence as "key" to Watford and the Italian was impressed with his contribution on the pitch against the Robins.

"It was the first time I have seen Fitz Hall play," said Sannino.

"He is a very good guy, an extraordinary guy - I was interested to see how he could perform and that’s why I selected him.

"It was good to see him out on the pitch and I was happy about his performance."

Sannino also moved to pay tribute to three other players who have not featured regularly for the Hornets this season - Cristian Battocchio, Iriney and Jonathan Bond.

Bond made an important save just two minutes into the match, denying Sam Baldock from opening the scoring after he had been put through one-on-one.

Sannino said: "I would like also to pay tribute to Battocchio, Iriney and Bond who during this season have not always been involved in the team.

"Bond was able to keep a clean sheet for us and the first save was very important because if they scored that goal it could have been a very different match."

He added: "I am happy when my lads come back into the dressing room smiling – it means we played a good game – but to be able to smile in the dressing room you have to run and do a lot of work on the pitch during the match."