Watford manager Javi Gracia believes that his team can hand Manchester City their first domestic defeat since January and win the FA Cup final.

The decider will be the third meeting of the two sides this season with the Premier League champions coming out on top in those league games.

City won the December clash 2-1 at Vicarage Road before winning 3-1 at the Etihad where Raheem Sterling bagged a hat-trick but Gracia saw some positives in the defeats.

"We lost both games but I think we saw we can beat them," Gracia said on Wednesday.

"We competed really well [in] both games. In different moments with different circumstances, it showed us it is possible."

City will be hugely motivated to win an unprecedented treble having already bagged the Premier League trophy last Sunday, following on from their EFL Cup success earlier in the year.

Javi Gracia doesn't think City are best in the world

When asked, Gracia stopped short of calling Saturday's opponents the best in the world.

"I think [they] are the best team in the Premier [League], not in the world. Their results [demonstrate] that. They won the Premier League and they deserve that recognition. The best in the world? We'll see."

Watford’s 35-year wait for a second FA Cup Final appearance is the longest since 1967, when Chelsea appeared in their second Final 52 years after first featuring in 1915.

They will need to buck the recent trend in results against City.

The Hornets have lost their last 10 matches against Pep Guardiola's team in all competitions, conceding 32 goals in those games.

They are also winless in 15 games against the Citizens (W0 D2 L13) since a 1-0 win in March 1989 in the second tier.

The FA Cup final takes place at Wembley on Saturday with a kick-off time of 5pm and it will be screened live on BBC 1 and on BT Sport.