Claudio Ranieri said he always believed his Watford team could beat Manchester United, but admitted the way his side won was particularly pleasing.

The Hornets increased the mounting pressure on Ole Gunnar Solskjaer with an emphatic 4-1 victory at Vicarage Road and after the match the head coach said he was very satisfied with how his team picked up three important points.

"I was confident before the match," said Ranieri. "My players are good players but of course they must understand the Premier League. It was a fantastic performance, the first half was amazing, we pressed higher.

"In the second half we conceded some good chances to draw the match but we continued to press, to play to score more goals. In the end we won the match and we are very satisfied for the performance, for the result, for the three points. They were important also."

In particular Ranieri was pleased with winger Ismaila Sarr, who has looked short on confidence in recent weeks.

The Senegal international reacted well after missing from the penalty spot, twice after a retake was needed with Kiko Femenia encroaching in the area, to score the second of the match.

"All my players played very well," the Italian continued. "I’m also very happy with Sarr because after two penalty misses, he scored a goal and I think he’s a little less sad today."