Watford never lost faith in their own ability to come up with the goods even in the midst of a nine-game run without a Premier League win, according to near ever-present midfielder Etienne Capoue.

The Frenchman is one of only three Watford players to have taken to the field in each of the Hornets' 25 league games, including during an injury-ravaged Christmas period which threatened to derail their season.

But from looking over their shoulders, Capoue and his team-mates now have their eyes back on the top-half of the Premier League - something only two points from their grasp - following a run of one defeat in their last five games.

The crowning glory of that time is, without doubt, the 2-1 victory at Arsenal at the start of February, a game the Hornets were 14-1 to win before kick-off.

Capoue might well have taken those odds, were he allowed, with the 28-year-old insistent the Hornets had never let their self belief waver.

He said: "We have had some good results but we knew we could manage these kind of performances.

"We need to improve against the teams fighting against relegation, and win against them. Then we can concentrate on playing better against the big teams.

"At Manchester United, we wanted to repeat the performance that we managed at Arsenal, but they played well in the midfield and created a lot of spaces.

"It was difficult for us to combat it, and they scored two good goals. They put us under a lot of pressure.

"We tried to play our football, but it was difficult and we didn’t create a lot of chances. We need to be more clinical at both ends of the pitch."