Defender Craig Cathcart felt his side were full value for the three points, as Watford secured an important 2-0 victory over Huddersfield Town on their travels.

The stand-in captain played a vital role as he helped earn a fourth consecutive clean sheet, allowing the forwards a platform to progress as João Pedro notched a decisive double in West Yorkshire.

Cathcart knew that if Watford persevered and maintained their composure after a goalless first half, the encounter would eventually open up.

“It was great to have a solid defence today and it’s something to build on,” he began. “The more chances we can make, the more likely we are to win games.

“Early on I think we struggled with the patterns and movement, but I think overall we defended the box quite well. Going into half-time, we knew we had to be patient and take our chances in the second half and we did.

“We broke away two or three times and had opportunities. We knew if we kept knocking on the door the chances would come and that’s how it turned out in the end.”

With three points lifting Watford to third in the Sky Bet Championship table, the 33-year-old pointed to João Pedro as the difference maker.

“He’s brilliant, he’s dynamite in a game,” Cathcart continued. “I said to him after the match that I was more impressed with his header rather than his first goal because it was unstoppable and into the top corner.

“He’s quite aggressive and doesn’t mind putting his head in where it hurts. You get that a lot with Brazilian players – we had that with Richarlison.

“I think it’s key that we look after ourselves and not focus too much on the other teams now. We need to try and do our job and get the job done. We have struggled here over the years, so we need to move on now and try and build up the momentum.”

Despite a depleted midfield department due to numerous injuries, Cathcart praised the work rate and attitude of duo Tom Dele-Bashiru and debutant Leandro Bacuna.

He added: “The lads have done great today and put a big shift in. Leandro [Bacuna] has come in and done brilliantly. Obviously, he had to come off at the end and we worked around it. I think it just shows the depth in the squad that we managed to get the job done.

“We have options all over the pitch and the squad is really good. You need to be on the top of your game to stay in the team because whoever is on the bench is ready to come in.

“We want to build on today, keep the momentum going and hopefully give the fans a good performance on Boxing Day and get the three points.”