Craig Shakespeare has insisted Watford will be ready to fight for their place in the Premier League, once action resumes later this month.

The assistant coach said the players have had to refocus their minds slightly following the halt to play brought about by the coronavirus outbreak, but insists the players have been in a positive mood since returning to training and are raring to go.

“They've given us everything since they have come back,” said Shakespeare on the club website.

“They've come back fit, really hungry and if anything we've had to rein them in a bit. These lads are itching to be let off the leash so I can reassure everyone that we will be ready.

“The mindset has to be now that we have nine games to go and we know what we've got to do. That was always the focus and now we have to refocus because what happened with the pandemic quite rightly overtook everyone's mindset. We are back and our job is to now make sure the players are organised and ready to win football matches because that's what it's about: winning. We knew the situation before we stopped and we know the situation now. We have to make sure the focus is on keeping this club in the Premier League.”

With players now back in contact training, things are starting to feel a bit more ordinary than before, although distancing measures at the training ground remain in place, reminding everyone of the severity of the situation.

Nevertheless, the Hornets now have a game to prepare for, as well as the possibility of friendly fixtures beforehand too. The aim now is to keep preparing for the relegation scrap, in just over two weeks' time.

“It is a bit like pre-season as you get your first game and you work back from that,” said Shakespeare. “We know when our first game will be and we are now adapting sessions with the sports science department as things have moved on quicker than everybody thought. At first we had to adapt every session, whether it be passing, defending or finishing, to make sure it was all done from a safe distance. We had to come up with fresh ideas, which was a challenge but a good challenge, and make it as realistic as we could. Now we are working in bigger groups and moved onto what you would describe as normal football quicker than anticipated.

“I have to say it felt a bit strange at first as the openness of the training ground and the camaraderie and team spirit we had built on the back of that was one of our strengths. But we've all had to be adaptable and everybody has got on with it. The players have been first class.”