Ben Foster praises the demeanour of Watford boss Javi Gracia

Watford goalkeeper Ben Foster has praised the qualities of manager Javi Gracia and believes the Spaniard’s calm personality on and off the pitch has helped the team progress. The Hornets have made another quick start to the Premier League campaign and they are currently on 20 points after the first 13 games of the season.

Speaking to TalkSPORT, Foster spoke positively about the influence of the former Malaga head coach and suggested that the Spaniard’s down to earth attitude without giving anything away has been influential towards the club’s strong start to the campaign, he said: “He’s just a really nice guy first and foremost. He’s very calm and down to earth and very approachable. You can speak to him just like a normal bloke. But then when it comes to management he mirrors that and is very calm. He never gets too excited and I think as players and grown men, you respect that a bit more than the ones that shout and bawl at you.”

Watford have generally fared impressively during the first half of seasons but that has not quite been replicated during the backend of the campaign. This has generally witnessed them lying towards the lower end of the table when the season concludes and this is something which Gracia could seek to resolve during the current campaign.

“The Hornets are presently on a lean run with just one point accumulated from the previous three league “matches and this run may potentially extend during the forthcoming weeks where “they are scheduled to “ face Leicester City, Manchester City and Everton – all of whom are in a good run of form.

Meanwhile, Foster has not enjoyed much success between the sticks with just three clean sheets but he has been impressive with his stop-stopping with an average of more than two saves made per game.