Roy Hodgson said his Watford team were "running out of time" to preserve their Premier League status after being thrashed at Wolves.
The hosts scored three times in the opening 21 minutes as they recorded their biggest top-flight win since 2011 to keep Watford in the relegation zone, three points from safety.
Watford, who have won just one of their last 16 league games, missed the opportunity to move level on points with fourth-bottom Everton and, worryingly for them, they have also played more matches than the sides immediately above them and have a worse goal difference.