Ben Foster is the best English goalkeeper currently playing, according to team-mate Heurelho Gomes.

The Brazilian said he believes Foster should be playing for the England national team ahead of the likes of Jordan Pickford and Tom Heaton, but that Foster disagrees.

“I believe from now at the moment, Ben is the best English goalkeeper playing,” he said.

“I told him, he said no, but he deserves it.

“Now, I like the others a lot, but Ben deserves it.”

Gomes was asked about the fellow Hornets’ goalkeeper following a recent spate of mistakes from the likes of Pickford and while he did say he thought Foster was the best, he also stated he felt sad when goalkeepers are criticised for their mistakes.

He said: “I feel sad because it can happen to me and it happened to me a lot. 

“This is our work, we aren’t making mistakes because we want to. We need our preparation to minimise it, sometimes it’s really hard because we’re human beings. 

“When the forward makes a mistake, it’s not going to end up with a goal, but we’re the last line and more exposed to mistakes.

“I’m sad when this happens, me and Ben always try and be together with the other goalkeepers.

“We’re the only ones who wear gloves, we’re different on the pitch, we need to be together when this situation happens.”

Gomes has repeatedly said he is 99 per cent sure that this season will be his last as a professional footballer, but while he is still playing, he is still working hard to maintain his physical fitness, in order to be ready to play should he be called upon.

The goalkeeper is used to working hard to prepare himself, after starting life as a striker and having to adapt his game to play between the sticks professionally.

He said: “It was the only opportunity for me to be a footballer, but it was to be a goalkeeper. 

“I could see I was going to get something to help my family, so I grabbed that chance to be a goalkeeper.

“I didn’t have the preparation that a goalkeeper needs to have, so I needed to work so hard.

“We have to look after ourselves away from here. I don’t like to miss any training sessions, otherwise I can lose the focus I need to have when I’m not playing a lot, I have to be fit and prepared.

“Players will sometimes not be prepared when they have their chance. I want to be prepared.

“I cannot eat the same I used to eat before. I have to eat better than I did, but the preparation at the club is amazing.”

Gomes has been with Watford since 2014 and in that time has seen the Hornets grow from a Championship club into an established Premier League outfit, currently battling for a Europa League spot.
The Brazilian looked back on his time with the club and talked about his favourite moments.

He said: “Everybody says our promotion against Brighton, when we won away, we were promoted, I believe was the highlight of my career here.

“I’m very happy with the work I’ve done at Watford.

“Footballers want to win some silverware, like I used to do with PSV or Cruzeiro in Brazil as well. It was important for us to win trophies, but it’s not everything.

“Sometimes a win is not just about lifting a trophy, it’s the work you have done with the club.

“I am happy for the good work I have done.

“At the beginning I wasn’t so good, but the end is most important and I’m happy with my end.”