Watford's newest arrival Andre Gray laughed off any pressure that may surround him after becoming the club's most expensive ever player.

Some £18 million was splashed out on the 26-year-old when he signed a five-year deal at Vicarage Road yesterday, on the back of a meteoric rise from the National League North to the Premier League in just five years.

Nine goals in his first season in the top flight took Watford head coach Marco Silva's interest, and he is expected to slot straight into the club's starting line-up against Liverpool on Saturday.

His ascention through the divisions, from Hinkley United to Burnley - and now Watford - has merely made Gray more determined to prove wrong those who thought he would never make it, and it's something he is continuing with his latest move.

He said: “There’s no extra pressure for me, it’s more exciting than anything, to show the belief that the club have in me to go and spend that extra money.

“I don’t see why I don’t merit the record fee. I signed for Burnley for £9 million two years ago and people asked the same questions, but we got promoted and I was Player of the Year and top goalscorer – I don’t think anyone questioned it then.

“I had a year left on my contract, but I made the decision that both me and the club had to make. Watford came in, and it was a new challenge that I was excited to take on.”