When Adrian Mariappa left Watford in 2012 the club were a mid-table Championship side.

Fast forward four years and the popular defender has returned for his second spell with the Hornets but things are very different at Vicarage Road.

Watford are striving to become an established Premier League team and Mariappa believes everything is in place for the club to continue their growth on and off the pitch.

The 29-year-old said: “It’s changed loads. They’ve [Pozzos] definitely moved the club forward and just coming to the training ground you can see the improvements that have been made everywhere.

“It’s a club that’s definitely geared for the Premier League and they’re still trying to push on now. You can see that in all the investments they’ve made, the infrastructure with the stadium and how that the looks and the players they’ve got on the pitch.”

Mariappa is not surprised by the strides made by the club following the Pozzos’ takeover, which took place just weeks before the defender moved to Reading.

He said: “I think from the year I left you saw how well they did on the pitch and the owners are people who know what they’re doing.

“They’ve done the same in other countries and applied the same formula over here and it’s worked.

“If you invest in the right areas at a football club you can do well. The most important thing is you have the right people on the pitch to get those results to get in the Premier League and stay there.”

Mariappa moved on to Crystal Palace in 2013 but a frustrating end to his time at Selhurst Park saw him struggle to secure regular football.

After his contract ended this summer, Mariappa completed an unexpected return to Watford, signing a three-year deal last month.

Having spent 17 years at the club, it was not something the Jamaica international thought twice about when offered the chance to rejoin the Hornets.

Mariappa said: “Obviously it’s a great feeling to be back. When the deal came about I jumped at it. It’s great to be back and I just want to get going and try to get back in the team.

“It is home for me and I never moved from the area. I still lived in the same area and when you’re at a club from the age of eight until 25 it’s very much a part of you.

“It is home for me and coming back to the training ground, although I’ve only had a few sessions, slipped right back in and just feel very positive going forward.”

When asked if he ever expected to get a chance to return to the club, he replied: “You never know in football and it’s not something I would ever have ruled out.

“It’s my home club so you’d never rule that out. It’s come full circle and I’ve come back and like I said I’m delighted to be here.”

Mariappa has yet to play following his return to the club but faces a much tougher challenge, winning a place in a team, with so much strength in depth.

He admitted: “The squad’s definitely moved on from when I was last here. There is a lot of competition for places but I’m hungry to break into the team.

“I never expected to just walk straight in here to the starting XI anyway. I’m definitely very hungry to get in the side and when I do I’m not trying to come out of the team.”

The defender believes he is nearing full fitness and is excited about playing in front of the Watford fans again.

Mariappa, who made his debut for the club 11 years ago, said: “I’m really looking forward to it [playing at Vicarage Road].

“I don’t know when that’s going to come but at the moment I’m just getting my head down in training and trying to get myself in the team. When that moment does come, I’ll take it from there.”

He forged a close friendship with players such as Troy Deeney and Lloyd Doyley during his time at the club and is eager to get back on the pitch alongside the captain as soon as possible.

Mariappa said: “I’ve kept in close contact with all the lads I was here with anyway so it’s good obviously to be around them day in day out. I feel like I’ve never been away from them to be fair.

“I can’t wait to get out on the pitch with him [Deeney] and it will be a great moment for me.”