Preview: Watford vs. Sheffield United - prediction, team news, lineups

Both aiming to bounce backmost to winning ways aft tricky runs successful the festive period, Watford and Sheffield United volition bash conflict astatine Vicarage Road connected Saturday.

The visitors person dropped to 3rd spot successful the Championship table successful the midst of a three-match winless streak aft Christmas, portion their hosts present beryllium eighth pursuing back-to-back defeats.

Match preview

© Imago

Watford instrumentality to enactment connected Saturday aiming to determination backmost into the Championship's playoff places, having dropped retired of the apical six pursuing astir the extremity of 2024.

The Hornets enjoyed a pleasing archetypal fractional to their archetypal afloat play nether the absorption of Tom Cleverley connected the whole, sitting connected 34 points from 21 games astatine Christmas, having won 10 of those and suffered 7 defeats, and they would ascent into the apical six with a 2-1 Boxing Day triumph implicit Portsmouth astatine Vicarage Road.

They person been incapable to physique connected that effect successful 2 further attempts since, though, past hosting Cardiff City past Sunday and succumbing to a 2-1 loss, arsenic Callum Robinson netted a first-half brace for the visitors either broadside of Giorgi Chakvetadze's equaliser.

A travel to Queen's Park Rangers past followed connected New Year's Day and Cleverley's men again came distant empty-handed, having gone 2-0 down to goals from Michael Frey and Jimmy Dunne earlier Kwadwo Baah's decorativeness to trim the shortage was instantly followed by a Sam Field extremity successful the 2nd fractional to seal a 3-1 location win.

Having dropped to eighth spot arsenic a effect of those defeats, but inactive lone trailing sixth-placed West Bromwich Albion by 2 points, Watford volition present bid to bounce backmost and instrumentality to the playoff spots with a 12th league triumph of the season.

© Imago

Their visitors, meanwhile, volition besides purpose to get backmost to winning ways astatine Vicarage Road and extremity their toughest tally of the run frankincense far.

Sheffield United enjoyed a good archetypal fractional to the play connected their instrumentality to the Championship, sitting atop the array astatine Christmas connected 48 points from 22 games, contempt opening with a two-point deduction, having won 15 of those and lone suffered 2 defeats.

Chris Wilder's men past headed into a Boxing-Day clash with chap promotion-chasers Burnley and saw an 11-game unbeaten streak brought to an extremity successful a 2-0 defeat, earlier hosting West Bromwich Albion past play and taking a stock of the points having gone up done Andre Brooks and been held to a 1-1 gully by Karlan Grant's leveller.

Another pugnacious trial followed connected New Year's Day arsenic the Blades visited fourth-placed Sunderland, and Wilder's men went 3 matches without a league triumph for the archetypal clip this season, suffering a 2-1 decision having fallen down and drawn level done a Luke O'Nien own-goal, lone for Wilson Isidor to reconstruct the hosts' pb earlier the interval.

Now near wounded by their toughest spell frankincense acold successful the engaged festive schedule, Sheffield United person dropped to 3rd spot, albeit lone trailing Burnley connected extremity difference, and volition beryllium keen to halt a increasing rot and instrumentality to the apical 2 connected Saturday.

Watford Championship form:

Sheffield United Championship form:

Team News

© Imago

Watford are acceptable to stay without midfielders Tom Dele-Bashiru and Imran Louza connected Saturday owed to ongoing wounded issues.

Edo Kayembe whitethorn travel backmost successful from the outset, joining Tom Ince and Moussa Sissoko successful the motor country if Cleverley opts to power to a 4-3-3 shape, leaving Ryan Porteous, Mattie Pollock and Francisco Sierralta to vie for spots successful the mediate of a backmost four.

Rocco Vata volition anticipation to instrumentality to the onslaught successful enactment of Vakoun Issouf Bayo, though Kwadwo Baah should support his spot aft uncovering the nett successful their New Year's Day decision to QPR portion prima antheral Giorgi Chakvetadze is bound to play a cardinal relation from the outset.

Sheffield United proceed to contend with a agelong wounded database of their own, with Harry Souttar and Oliver Arblaster sidelined by semipermanent issues, portion Femi Seriki, Jesurun Rak-Sakyi, Vinicius Souza, Jamie Shackleton and Tyrese Campbell each continued absences connected New Year's Day and volition not beryllium acceptable to diagnostic astatine the weekend.

Given those losses, Jack Robinson volition proceed to articulation Anel Ahmedhodzic successful the mediate of the backmost four, portion Tom Davies and Sydie Peck volition proceed their midfield partnership.

Andre Brooks, who netted his archetypal elder extremity for the Blades successful the 1-1 gully with West Bromwich Albion, volition anticipation to displace Rhian Brewster and articulation Callum O'Hare and Gustavo Hamer successful enactment of beforehand antheral Kieffer Moore, fixed the absences of Rak-Sakyi and Campbell.

Watford imaginable starting lineup:
Bachmann; Ngakia, Porteous, Pollock, Larouci; Ince, Kayembe, Sissoko; Chakvetadze, Bayo, Baah

We say: Watford 1-1 Sheffield United

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