If you want to be successful, then you have to give big performances that deliver big results in the biggest games.

That is the message Watford head coach Chris Wilder will be drumming into his players ahead of the much-anticipated trip to face Luton at Kenilworth Road on Saturday.

The Hornets are nine points and six places behind their old rivals in the Championship table, although the more pressing issue is that they are five points adrift of a play-off place.

With eight games left, the margin for error – if there is any – is very small indeed, and Wilder admits you cannot treat a game such as this just like any other fixture in the calendar.

“It isn’t really possible to balance it being ‘just another game’ with the fact that it’s a big derby,” he said.

“Let’s not beat about the bush: it will never be just another game. You’re playing your bitter rivals on their patch.

“I’ve played in derby games and I’ve managed them. I know what these games mean to the supporters.”

Before the two sides met at Vicarage Road in October, there were player meetings and discussions about the significance of the occasion.

With so many players away on international duty this week, there hasn’t been the luxury of getting the entire squad together. However, Wilder said they will not go into the game lacking awareness.

“We’ve dropped little bits into the players this week and will continue to do so, but I’d also expect them to recognise as well what this game is,” he said.

“There’s been a lot of talk about the first game in October, and people were delighted with how it went. But that’s a distant memory.

“The players should recognise themselves that the win at home is in the past, and along with what me and my staff will be giving them in terms of messages about this game, they need to be ready for what it’s going to be like.

“Kenilworth Road is a difficult place for any away team to play at, it’s always been a difficult ground to get a result.

“They’ve had a couple of decent seasons in terms of getting in the play-offs and being in the play-off places. It’s going to be a difficult fixture.

“But if you want to achieve, if you want to get into the play-offs, if you want this to be a successful season in terms of getting into the play-offs and potentially going up, then you have to produce big performances to get big results.

“The team, the players, me and my staff – we have to produce those big performances.”

Parts two and three of this exlcusive interview will be published this morning. To make sure you can read any Watford FC story any time you want (with less ads), get a Watford Observer digital subscription - click here to find out how. You can currently get your first month for £1, and also be entered into a draw to win a chocolate hamper.