Hornets joys tempered by loss of Foster

Watford chief executive Mark Ashton insisted the Hornets were "delighted'' to be in the semi-finals of the FA Cup although their joy will be tempered by the news that goalkeeper Ben Foster would be unable to face his parent club Manchester United should they win through.

Ashton told Sky Sports News: “Any draw in the semi-final is a good draw and we’re delighted to be there.

“It’s fair to say we are the team everyone wanted to play. We are delighted to be there and will be giving it our all.”

However, with Foster on a season-long loan from Old Trafford, Ashton revealed: “We have an agreement with Manchester United that Ben wouldn’t play in any competition this season, so as far as we are aware that will stand.”

Ashton did, though, insist the Hornets would provide stiff opposition for whoever they faced after grinding out a 1-0 win yesterday at Plymouth to progress.

“Yesterday was a typical FA Cup tie, it was a hard performance and I think the lads did really well. The result was fantastic.”

Ashton was adamant the Hertfordshire club would still prefer to claim Premiership safety rather than win the cup.

“Every performance has been very competitive this season. We are extremely hard to beat every time we play. The cup has been no different. The league always has to come first. We have a winning mentality.”