Watford defence talk makes Roy Hodgson 'cringe' ahead of Brighton and Aston Villa battles

Roy Hodgson believes his Watford team will soon have an attacking threat to match his famed defensive solidity as they prepare to face Brighton at Vicarage Road this Saturday.

Watford suffered a narrow 1-0 defeat to West Ham on Tuesday and this Saturday offers a quick chance to hit back, and Hodgson is hopeful of earning a first win of 2022 that could provide vital momentum in the relegation fight.

"We have to dust ourselves down," said Hodgson after the West Ham loss. "Accept it wasn’t our night, and be happy with the fact I can already see our stamp on the team.”

Striker Emmanuel Dennis - back following suspension - was lively up front alongside Joshua King on Tuesday and Hodgson thinks soon-to-be-returning AFCON winner Ismaïla Sarr can help add further attacking quality.

“I cringe when I hear people saying you’ve been working hard on defence because all teams do, but I’m happy with the result of the work we’ve been doing," added the 74-year-old.

“But I know we’re not only going to win games by doing the defensive side of things better. We need to improve at both sides of the game. It was good to have Dennis back and we’ll have Sarr back soon as well, who’s going to be important.

“I thought we had attacking threat today and I’m not concerned about that end of the field. Perhaps we didn't produce that golden goal chance, but I'm sure we will as we work more.”

Watford's loss coupled with Newcastle's rousing 3-1 win against Frank Lampard's Everton places Hodgson's men second from bottom and adds even more importance on Watford's clash against ninth placed Brighton, followed by Aston Villa on February 19.

He added: “I’ve been in equally bad positions before as a manager and we have to look at the players. They’ve shown they care, and that’s really important.

“They worked hard tonight physically and on the principles we’re trying to encourage. They’ve got to maintain that, but I do believe we have lots of positives to take into Saturday, and ultimately enough to keep ourselves safe.”