Watford vs Wolves
Date: 27/04/2019
K/O: 15:00
Venue: Vicarage Road
Referee: Simon Hooper
Wolves will seek their revenge against Watford from their dramatic FA Cup semi-final exit when the Hornets stung Nuno Espirito Santo’s side by coming back from a two-goal deficit with only ten minutes remaining to send the West Midlands side out of the 2018/19 FA Cup.
That victory has allowed Watford a chance at silverware as well as two avenues to qualify for the Europa League. If they don’t beat Manchester City in the FA Cup final, then the final Europa League qualifying spot will go to seventh. Wolves only have the single and still not guaranteed chance of getting into Europe through finishing seventh, which Watford are also in contention for.
This fixture carries as much importance and significance as the FA Cup semi-final as both teams are competing for seventh in the Premier League. Wolves currently hold this position with a point advantage over their opponents who are looking to put a sting in their tail, behind them in eighth.
Wolves continued to show their strength against the Premier League’s top six after a comfortable mid-week victory against Arsenal. Watford, on the other hand, failed to beat a mathematically unsafe Southampton side at home on Tuesday, resulting in Saturday’s opponents leapfrogging them into seventh.
The rivalry between the two clubs has been constant through the second half of this Premier League season as both have exchanged the lead to seventh numerous times this season as well as facing off in the FA Cup semi-final.
This fixture has all the makings of a cup tie as a draw could see them both sacrifice the lead for seventh come the end of the game on Saturday. Everton could take control of the fight for seventh if the Merseyside club beat Crystal Palace at Selhurst Park and Leicester can launch themselves into the fray if they were to beat Arsenal on Sunday at The King Power Stadium. Neither one of these teams can afford to slip up and give another team control with only three games remaining.
Wolves claimed another big scalp on Wednesday after dispatching Unai Emery’s fainthearted Arsenal with ease, going three up by half time. They conceded with ten minutes remaining from a set piece but, apart from the opening twenty minutes, weren’t in real danger of having the game taken from them once going ahead.
Like they do, Arsenal wilted after the first goal and continued to crumble as Wolves piled on the pressure. Wolves fans sort have an expectation for their side now when coming up against the tougher opposition but it’s games like the one on Saturday that tend to surprise.
Coming up against Watford after an impressive victory over Arsenal, many would think that Wolves have a solid chance of leaving London with all three points. However, that’s not usually the case.
This game carries a lot and is considered a massively important fixture in Wolves season, but you can never be sure which Wolves team will turn up when not facing one of the top six.
Javi Gracia’s first season at Watford has been astonishing and he can end it with a trophy and ‘best of the rest’ which would guarantee Europa League football next season.
They can even boast that they have spent more time in the top four than Champions League hopefuls Manchester United this season. Andre Gray’s last minute equaliser against the Saints on Tuesday temporarily put Watford seventh, until the Wolves result the night after.
Watford could still match their best points tally achieved by Graham Taylor in 1985/1986 campaign of 53 points while obtaining their highest Premier League finish. The Watford boss has warned of complacency and has urged his men to make it a rare three wins out of three for the season against the Midlands side.
Team News
Wolves, like most of the season, have no new injury worries and it’s probable that Nuno Santo Espirito will stick with his favoured starting eleven. Midweek goal scorers Neves, Jota and Doherty are all likely to start as they regularly feature in the starting line-up.
Watford have no new fresh injury concerns since their last outing against Southampton. Troy Deeney will serve his final match suspension from the straight red card he picked up against Arsenal a few weeks ago.
Craig Cathcart was substituted at half-time on Tuesday and it’s unknown whether this was in retaliation to his mistake which led to Shane Long scoring the quickest Premier League goal ever. He should maintain his place unless his confidence has been shaken as well as his manager’s patience with the player.
The Hornets have played two games in four days which may lead to a squad rotation to keep legs fresh as well as give an opportunity for others to showcase their talents for the FA Cup final selection.
If this is the case, Adrian Mariappa, Nathaniel Chalobah and Issac Success could come into contention for a place in the starting line-up. However, Watford too have managed a good level of consistency in their team selection, so there may be no change from the line-up that faced Southampton.
Predicted Starting XIs
Watford (4-4-2): Foster; Janmaat, Kabasele, Cathcart, Masina; Hughes, Doucoure, Capoue, Pereyra; Delofeou, Gray.
Wolves (3-5-2): Rui Patricio; Coady, Bennett, Boly; Doherty, Jonny, Dendoncker, Neves, Moutinho; Jota, Jimenez.
Prediction: Watford 1 – 2 Wolverhampton Wanderers
This will be the third meeting between the two sides this season, and Watford have won both. Wolves’ away form has been abysmal and they have been defeated by Southampton, Burnley and Huddersfield, whilst miraculously drawing with Chelsea tallying only two points from a possible fifteen.
Watford’s form since the semi-final both home and away has matched that of the Black Country club having earned four points from a possible nine. Despite Gracia playing down this fixture, there’s undoubtedly a lot to play for in the race for Europe. Watford will be without captain Troy Deeney who is usually a handful, but they have managed to keep performances up to a good standard.
Connor Coady has expressed his painful memory of the semi-final and how Wolves are out for redemption. When Wolves’ mentality is that of a big game, they can challenge any team. A squad rotation for Watford to keep players fit for their FA Cup final may pose weaknesses for the visiting side to exploit.
It’s a hard game to call but neither side can risk a draw considering Everton can take control if they were to win and this match ends as a stalemate. It can go either way however, Watford’s disappointing result in the week and Wolves’ memorable victory could see that momentum carry through, this result would put the Hornets four points behind Wolves.
