Newly-promoted Watford have decided to splash the cash after spending a club-record fee to complete the signing of Etienne Capoue from Tottenham.

The Hornets finished second in the Championship last season to earn automatic promotion to the Premier League and they have already added extra strength to their squad with the addition of the midfielder.

The 26-year-old has put pen-to-paper on a four-year contract at Vicarage Road and will be hoping the switch can offer more regular first-team opportunities.

Watford have now broken their club-record fee of £3.25million which they paid for Nathan Ellington back in 2007, the season after the Hornets were relegated to the Championship.

Capoue, who started out at Toulouse and played 174 times for the French outfit, will add a great deal of experience to the squad having represented France at Under-18, 19, 21 and full international levels in his career.

Before moving to Tottenham in 2013 the midfielder was one of the star performers in Ligue 1 and he was named in the French league’s team of the year in 2012, alongside Spurs goalkeeper Hugo Lloris.

Capoue is expected to be one of numerous arrivals this summer as Watford look to cement their place in the Premier League and the midfielder will now join his new team-mates in pre-season training.

The 1984 FA Cup runners-up start their season with an away trip to Everton and the hosts are favourites at 1.70 to clinch the victory, the draw outcome is quoted 3.60 while the visitors are outsiders at 5.00.

The last time Watford were in the Premier league was the 2006-07 campaign, where they finished bottom, and the club are the shortest odds at 1.75 to go straight back down to the Championship.