Slavisa Jokanovic says he needs more time to improve his Watford side and admits he still has a lot to learn in the Championship.

The former Chelsea midfielder took over from Billy McKinlay on October 7 and enjoyed a good start to life at Vicarage Road, with the Hornets taking eight points from his first four games in charge.

Back-to-back defeats – and disappointing performances against Birmingham City and Ipswich Town – followed and the Golden Boys slipped from the summit of the Championship table to fifth place.

The international break gives Jokanovic almost two weeks to work with the majority of his players on the training pitch and he knows improvements must be made.

“I believe it is necessary to have more time,” he told the Watford Observer prior to the Hornets’ defeat to Ipswich.

“We have to try to create better combinations and use our skills better. “When we lose I will not put my head down and stop believing what I believed one day previously.

“I understand that the people who follow us want to be winners. I want to be a winner too.

“If we lose, all of us, including the fans, need to keep our heads up and stay with Watford, the team they have supported all their lives.”

Defeats can be quickly accepted but it is the nature of Watford’s displays in their last two matches that have concerned a section of supporters.

The Hornets failed to control possession and the Watford defence have struggled to deal with crosses into the penalty box.

And against Ipswich the Golden Boys reverted to long, hopeful passes forward rather than building attacks from defence.

Jokanovic reasserted his belief the players must have the right mentality to win games and explained: “I’ve said the honeymoon is over and we have won, drawn and lost matches.

“I am going to continue to work hard and be 100 per cent focused. But, ultimately, football is me against you and both people can’t win.

“If you are ready, strong and have the right mentality then you are ready to fight for victory. You can’t start thinking about the future, only think about the present.”

Jokanovic said his players’ desire to fight and battle for victory wasn’t in question against Ipswich but he was frustrated with their failure to maintain possession. “It is not a question about mentality and fighting, it is about the personality to play football,” he explained after the game.

“If we lose the ball 30 metres up the pitch, it’s easier for us to defend. So we need to keep the ball and have more control.

“If we play this direct game, with many long balls, teams in the Championship are stronger than Watford.”

Prior to joining the Hornets, Jokanovic had won league titles and cup competitions in both Serbia and Thailand. He has, however, only had two full seasons in management.

Jokanovic accepts he still has plenty to learn about England’s second tier but says he hasn’t been surprised by the division.

He added: “The information that I had about the Championship before I arrived is more or less what I have found here.

“If you ask me ‘do you know everything about the Championship?’ I would say of course not.

“In front of me are many things I can learn and there are many things about football that I can still learn. “For me, it is like a working holiday.”