Watford's new head coach Nigel Pearson said he might have to change the club's identity on the pitch in order to keep the club in the Premier League.

The former Leicester City boss said that it is not beyond the club to achieve survival this season, but that he needed everyone to start pulling in the same direction both on and off the field.

"I’m really delighted to be here and it’s a challenge that on the face of it looks very very difficult," he said.

"It's certainly possible we can stay up, for sure we can stay up, but we’re going to have to have a collective buy in from everyone who’s associated. The players certainly as a group definitely need that, staff around the club as well. It strikes me as a club with an identity that maybe we need to redefine on the pitch.

"I'm not going to try and reinvent the wheel. It would be slightly foolish of me to think there’ll be a revolution that changes lots of things. If the mindset of the players is at the moment somewhat damaged, if confidence has been eroded from us not being able to find answers this season, myself and staff will do everything we can to help them on the journey. Ultimately the players have to come to the party, they've got to embrace the challenge. I know what it’s like when you’re in that situation as a player, frustrated with how things are, but things can change really quicky."

In terms of tactical changes to the team, Pearson knows there are problems at both ends of the field, with the Hornets conceding the greatest number of goals in the Premier League this season and scoring the fewest.

However, the new boss believes he can bring about the requisite changes.

"We have to look at where we are at the moment and formulate a pathway that’s going to give us the best chance," he said.

"We’re a side that has conceded too many and not scored enough. I think it’s more important for us to function as a team in both directions more efficiently. We need to find a way of playing that illustrates their game understanding as a group. We really believe we can affect that for sure. We have a side capable of creating and scoring and converting chances, but collectively we've got to be more difficult to break down."