Watford captain Troy Deeney has told how he has learnt to control his angry streak off the field.

The skipper was sent to prison in 2012 after kicking a man in the head during Birmingham street brawl as he struggled to keep control of his anger.

But after serving three months and visiting a psychologist, Deeney said he has found a way to manage his "animal" side off the pitch while still allowing the aggressive side into his game.

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The talented forward is now a reformed character following his time inside Winson Green and Thorn Cross prison.

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The 28-year-old has scored nine times this season, including his 100th Watford goal, and hasn't seen red since May 2013 - as he has become a role model on and off the field.

"That angry person is still there and it’s difficult for me to bring him out but I have to bring him out to be who I am on a football pitch," Deeney told the Mail on Sunday .

"Then I have to contain him as soon as I get back to real life and bury him back inside me. It’s the aggressive man in me, the man who just wants to win, win in any aspect of life.

"That’s what makes me good at football but it also makes me an animal. If you prod me, normally there’s a reaction.

"The way I was brought up, I got caught up in a lot of things I shouldn’t have got caught up in.

"I am angry at it but at the same time it has made me who I am.

"What I have learned from my psychologist is that all people contradict themselves. We don’t want any of the bad stuff to happen but we needed it to make us who we are now."

Last month, Deeney set up his own charitable foundation to help children with learning disabilities or life-limiting illnesses. 

His first project is fundraising to build a multi-purpose sports area at Garston Manor School, whose students are aged between 11 and 16 and all have autism and other learning disabilities.

Deeney recently revealed his biggest lie - that he had to lie to his son about his whereabouts during those long three months away from home.

Deeney, who took part in BBC Three’s new football show Taxi to Training, said: "I've got two kids now but I [only] had my son at that point. I never lie to my kids, that's one thing I never do.

"That's the only lie I have ever had to tell him, that I was at football camp, because he wasn't old enough to realise."