Watford need to be more mature in their approach to games if they are to stop shipping goals to the likes of Manchester City, Manchester United - and Spurs tomorrow - says head coach Marco Silva.

The Hornets went from being just on top of an even game against the Red Devils on Tuesday night to finding themselves three goals down in the space of 15 minutes.

Two of those three goals were as much down to the Hornets' poor defending than United's quality, and Silva wants to see an improvement against Spurs tomorrow.

Silva said: "I think they scored with their first three shots.

"In those moments we should and could do better. In the first 20 minutes we had control and we need to be clever agains these type of teams.

"We concded three goals and all of them were from a counter-attack. We need to be smart.

"We need to make the right decisions in important moments. These teams have quality going forward and they're strong, we need to be smart.

"Our idea is to play our game but we need to be more mature in some moments.

"In the last match our players didn't react well and conceded two more goals. We need to be more mature."

Silva has made clear he would rather lose a game going for victory than scrape a dull 0-0, something he has rightfully drawn admiration for during his career.

But the 40-year-old is not blind to the value of clean sheets; and added he has focused more than some may realise on defending when on the training field.

He said: "We prepare our games to try and create problems for our opponents. After that we're working with our defence - and we need to work on it - but our first thought is to cause them problems.

"You know, I didnt like that our team conceded four goals, I don't like it. The best way to win is with a clean sheet, and after you need to improve as a team.

"We need to be more secure and more strong in our defensive progress. Everyone enjoys how we play, we play to win, but we need a balance and to kleep strong.

"It's different when you play with 30 metres behind us, than 10 metres."