West Ham vs Watford: Preview & Prediction

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Match Preview:

Make no mistake Roy Hodgson is at Watford to deliver small moments of hope each weekend, a point here, a point there, avoid defeat and keep a clean sheet and that is what the veteran manager achieved in his first game in charge of the troubled Hornets as they drew 0-0 with bottom placed Burnley at the weekend. It was the only Premier League fixture in a weekend swamped with FA Cup games but it means that the club have 15 points and are in 18th place and just 1 point from safety, there is a long way too go though.

West Ham had their own troubles this past weekend as they were incredibly lucky to beat non league outfit Kidderminster. Kidderminster had taken the lead and played good football but in the 91st minute the Hammers equalised for extra time. With the game seemingly going to penalties David Moyes side grabbed the winner in the 121st minute- you couldn’t make it up. Understandably Kidderminster were heartbroken but they had played brilliantly and could hold their heads up high and be proud. West Ham were let off the hook in what would have been one of their most embarrassing losses in their history. 

As for the league the Hammers have slipped to 5th place after losing their last two games against Leeds and Manchester United respectively. That in itself doesn’t sound too bad for a possible top 4 finish however the club have played a game more than Manchester United above them, two games more than the chasing Arsenal and three games more than Tottenham and the feeling is that those teams will soon pass Moyes’ side.

Watford have drawn 2 of their last 3 games but are right in the mix presently to mount a challenge to survive. However if you take out Norwich who are in 17th place then suddenly a 4 point gap appears to safety and it could only take two poor games to see the Hornets in trouble. Away from home they have lost 60% of their games however they haven’t lost on the road for almost two months but that will be more down to postponements because of Covid-19 than anything else.

Team News: 

West Ham: Lukasz Fabianski is in line to return to the squad after a knock. Angelo Ogbonna looks set to miss the rest of the season with a long term knee injury.

Watford: Kwadwo Baah could be assessed after spending several weeks out with an ankle injury but he may miss out. Peter Etebo may only return from his thigh injury at the weekend and will be assessed.

West Ham vs Watford Head to Head:

Last season West Ham were able to ease past Watford winning 3-1. 

The Hammers have scored 14 goals past Watford in the last four meetings.

There is a 60% chance to see over 2.5 goals.

West Ham vs Watford Prediction:

West Ham need to bounce back and clearly they have a fantastic record over Watford over the past few years. They have beaten them 3-1 twice and 4-1 twice and the home side will be the odds on favourites to win this game. What has been so impressive with West Ham this season is how many players are not injured, this is a club that has faced 10 or more sidelined on a consistent basis over the past three seasons.

Watford relied on Ismaila Sarr before he was injured and then he came back into the team but had to go to the Africa Cup of Nations where he won the competition with Senegal. He is fit of course but after winning it on Sunday the question remains if he will be playing here on Tuesday evening, one would have to presume that manager Roy Hodgson won’t pick him.

The Hornets tactics have to be to defend and frustrate, and they might be able to do that for a period of time but it is difficult not to see the Hammers getting all 3 points which they dearly need to keep their top 4 hopes alive. As for goalscorers Tomas Soucek has a history of scoring against Watford, he's a great price and that could be good value for small stakes.

West Ham vs Watford Betting Tips:

Asian handicap (-1 West Ham) at 1.675

Anytime goalscorer: Tomas Soucek at 3.00