Watford boss Tom Cleverley makes telling demand ahead of Sunderland clash

Watford boss Tom Cleverley wants to see his side take the game to Sunderland at Vicarage Road on Saturday afternoon. Following their 0-0 draw with play-off chasers Hull City on Saturday, the Hornets currently sit two places and three points behind Mike Dodds' side in the Championship table.

As such, there's not too much to play for when the two sides meet in Hertfordshire, but Cleverley is still pushing to see improvement from his side. The former England international took the Watford reins on an interim basis last month following the sacking of Valerien Ismael, and there has been a notable improvement in performances since.

The Hornets have had a tough run of fixtures and they have won one of Cleverley's first seven, but they've also only lost one, with the likes of Leeds United, West Brom and Ipswich being held to draws. Cleverley, then, could be in the frame to earn the job on a permanent basis this summer and an improved performance against Sunderland could stand him in good stead.

“I think we had that mentally that we get more comfortable about coming out of our shells the closer we get to the end of the game,” Cleverley said after Saturday's draw with the Tigers. “Now I have to change that mentality. From the first minute of games we have to be looking to grab things by the scruff of the neck and want to make things happen.

“I don’t want us to be feeling other teams out for as long as we can, and then go for a big finish. Certainly at home I want us to have that mentality of superiority from minute one, and it’s my job to change that.”

Sunderland beat Watford 2-0 when they met at the Stadium of Light in October with Niall Huggins and Abdoullah Ba getting the goals.