Watford vs Norwich City tips and predictions: Canaries to sting Hornets in action-packed game
- George Dempsey
- 27 November 2023
Tuesday night's Championship fixtures should produce a televised classic as Watford and Norwich, as leaky as they are prolific, meet at Vicarage Road (2000 GMT).
Considering that Watford have averaged a new manager every four months since the summer of 2020, Valerian Ismael is doing a stand-up job.
The Hornets unravelled late on against Leicester but what preceded was a six-match unbeaten run that elevated them to 15th in the Championship.
Mileta Rajovic, Watford’s top scorer with six goals, missed a glorious chance to give them the lead and alter the course of the game at the King Power.
Tuesday’s opponents Norwich were a very early pacesetter but have since slumped after a run of one win in nine. Still, back-to-back wins since offer hope.
The Canaries did well to come from behind to beat Cardiff City 3-2 on their travels, although a home win against QPR was more a requirement than an achievement.
Jon Rowe (7), Gabriel Sara (5) and Adam Idah (5) have all played a starring role in front of goal for David Wagner’s side, but the German’s tenure is still under threat.
Ismael’s team have been profligate on their travels but prolific at home. Their 5-0 win over Rotherham ended Matt Taylor’s reign and increased their average to two goals per game.
Although they’ve netted 12 times in five matches, they’ve also shipped seven and let four points slip away.
Across City’s eight away games, we’ve witnessed 22 first-half goals, 15 second-half goals, nine leads lost and just one clean sheet.
If you look at their previous five results as home and away teams combined, those games average 4.1 goals per game.
Despite the unpredictable nature of these teams, Watford haven’t beaten anyone other than teams in trouble at home, so to trust them as an even-money shot seems unjustifiable.
