Watford will continue to push for compensation from Everton after the Toffees named Marco Silva as their manager, the Watford Observer understands.

The Toffees made what Watford believe to be an illegal approach for their then head coach in November and the Hornets have since filed an official complaint with the Premier League.

That complaint was originally reported to have been made earlier in May, but in fact came a number of months ago and has seen the Premier League step in to mitigate meetings between the two sides.

Watford contest that they are due compensation despite Silva, who was fired in January, no longer being contracted to the club, but are yet to receive any payment from the Goodison Park side.

While no figure has been placed on how much the Hornets believe they are due, a figure of £9 million was offered by Everton when initially asking to speak to Silva in 2017.

After starting his Watford tenure in flying fashion, Silva led Watford on an 11-game winless run which resulted in his departure in January after just 26 matches in charge.

Watford cited an approach for his services as having a direct impact on the head coach’s focus and results in the statement which came with Silva’s dismissal.

It read: “This has been a difficult decision and one not taken lightly. The club is convinced the appointment of Silva was the right one and had it not been for the unwarranted approach by a Premier League rival for his services we would have continued to prosper under his leadership.”

“The catalyst for this decision is that unwarranted approach, something which the board believes has seen a significant deterioration in both focus and results to the point where the long-term future of Watford FC has been jeopardised.

“For the security and success of the football club, the board believes it has to make a change.”