Heurelho Gomes celebrated his 38th birthday with the clean sheet that took Watford into the FA Cup quarter-finals — and now he is targeting a trip to Wembley.

Their hard-earned 1-0 victory at QPR on Friday means that they are one more win from reaching the competition's final four and a match under the Wembley arch.

Gomes missed out last time they played there when, as the club's then first-choice, he was rested for Costel Pantilimon in a semi-final defeat by Crystal Palace, but he has become their cup goalkeeper and intends to take advantage.

He played there for Tottenham when they lost to Manchester United in the 2009 League Cup final — Watford's first-choice Ben Foster then started for United — but a decade on Gomes' career is reaching its end.

He told his club's official website: "It's going to be great for us (if we reach Wembley). We need to believe; we need to still believe. Talking in the dressing room and after the game we were speaking about it. It's about belief.

"It's an amazing feeling; an amazing opportunity for me to continue to try to give my best.

"It was an amazing present for me — I couldn't ask for more.

"It's just about trying to keep Ben's level (when I play). He's amazing at the moment, he's playing very well, so in a game like this I have to be prepared to keep it up.

"He's amazing. We're able to help each other; we're a group where whether you're playing or not you're going to be helping."

QPR manager Steve McClaren has urged his players to use their impressive performance — they were the superior team — to end their run of five successive Sky Bet Championship defeats.

"How many saves did Joe Lumley have to make?," he said, speaking to the club's official website. "He didn't have to make a save.

"We were really disappointed to concede from a set-play, but I felt so comfortable otherwise.

"We dealt with (Troy) Deeney and (Andre) Gray so well. We caused them problems with the wing-backs. We were so, so close. We've just got to keep that spirit, that attitude and eventually it'll turn.

"We've got to take the performance into Tuesday against West Brom.

"Watford were strong and resilient which is why they're doing well in the Premier League. We've just got to keep believing and we'll start getting results."