Quique Sanchez Flores wants Watford to help defender Craig Dawson develop his confidence after a shaky start to life at Vicarage Road.

The Hornets' head coach said that the defender had encountered some "problems" since his arrival from West Bromwich Albion and that he needed to find a system that works for the player.

Dawson did help Watford achieve their first league clean sheet since February in their last outing against Sheffield United, after he replaced Sebastian Prodl from the bench and Sanchez Flores believes playing three central defenders can help the 29-year-old regain some form.

"With this defense [three at the back] he has a little bit more support in the sides," said the head coach.

"Dawson needs to take less decisions, so sometimes we try to create facilities for the players who right now, they have doubts to defend when they're conceding.

"We try to think of something that can help them feel more confident. I know Dawson has some problems in the start of the season, some troubles with goals, decisions, but football is decisions all the time, continual, this is a game of mistakes."

The head coach also spoke of his strikers' shortcomings this season and said they needed to be much more clinical.

With only four league goals so far this season, the Hornets have scored the fewest in the Premier League, despite having had more shots than several teams in the division.

Strikers Andre Gray and Danny Welbeck both missed clear-cut opportunities to score in the home game against the Blades two weeks ago and Sanchez Flores said he wants them to take their responsibilities.

"Sometimes we are really, really tough and hard with the defenders," he said.

"But then we need to be really clear also with the strikers and they need to take good decisions. I'm not telling you anything that you don't know, or I'm not telling you something that we didn't talk about.

"They know the responsibility of the strikers. Of course they are the first defenders, but second when they are close to the goal they need to take the best decisions. Sometimes they take them, other times no, but they try. They need to try."