Nathaniel Chalobah believes his ambition of getting an England call-up is one step closer after his summer move to Watford.
Chalobah left Chelsea back in July to sign for the Hornets on a five-year contract, which ended a seven-year tenure with the Blues.
Since 2012, the midfielder has had six loan spells away from Stamford Bridge, including a season with the Hornets back in the 2012-13 season.
Chalobah aiming for England call-up
The former Chelsea player played for England in the European Under-21 Championships in the summer, and is looking to follow the likes of Nathan Redmond and James Ward-Prowse in getting a call-up to the first team.
“Anyone who has played in the ranks before, who is young, can get the opportunity,” Chalobah said.
“Gareth has made it clear with selections in Redmond and Ward-Prowse, if you are doing well at clubs you have an opportunity. For everyone who is in the England set-up, it’s exciting."
Chalobah wanting to learn from Silva
Marco Silva has made it clear since he took over at the helm at Watford that he wanted to put his stamp on the team – he played a key role in Chalobah signing for the club.
And the midfielder praised the head coach and is confident that he can work closely with him to progress his career.
He said: “The manager was also something that was part of that. I’d heard some great things about him and I’d seen his work from last season (with Hull).
“I felt like he would be the perfect guy to improve me and hopefully teach me some new things.”
Leaving Chelsea was very emotional
Chalobah’s most recent loan spell came with Serie A side Napoli, where he played five times, but in a bid to secure more frequent first team football, Chalobah moved away from the Blues.
The 22-year-old believes regular football with Watford will help him secure a call-up to Gareth Southgate’s England squad in the near future.
“I was offered a new contract (at Chelsea), but I decided to leave and hopefully get opportunities here,” he said.
“Leaving Chelsea was very emotional because I’d been there since I was a boy. I wanted to be part of (Watford) against and I wanted to feel like I belong somewhere.”