Javi Gracia has signed a new deal with Watford which could keep him at the club until 2025.

Gracia has signed a new four-and-a-half year deal at Vicarage Road, keeping him with the Hornets until the summer of 2023, and there is a two-way option for a further three years.

It's a remarkable statement of faith by Watford owner Gino Pozzo, who had presided over a turnover of managers before Gracia, 48, replaced Marco Silva last January.

And if Gracia remains in office just until the break clause, he will have lasted more than his nine predecessors put together.

He said: “When I first arrived at Watford, it was snowing, it was cold, I was ill before my first match (away at Stoke) and in that week I was in hospital.

“It was important that I made the effort to be with the team and to support them. We only got a point, but it was an important point.

“I have found people with good values, ambition and desire to grow. In this moment, the team is doing a lot of things well, but they know that by being demanding we can improve."