Preview - Norwich City vs Watford 09 November 19

[Harry85]

Match Day 12
Norwich City vs. Watford
Saturday, November 9th 2019
04:00am (GMT+8 Timing)
Stadium: Carrow Road

Norwich City:
Last five matches form: L L D L L
Average goals per match: 1.00
Average goals against per match: 2.36
Top Scorer: Teemu Pukki (6)

Watford:
Last five matches form: L D D D L
Average goals per match: 0.55
Average goals against per match: 2.09
Top Scorer: Tom Cleverley, Abdoulaye Doucouré, Will Hughes, Roberto Pereyra, Gerard Deulofeu & Andre Gray (1).

It's a battle of the basement boys to kick off this week's proceedings in the Premier League, as rock bottom Watford travel to Carrow Road to take on second bottom Norwich City. Already four and six points adrift of safety respectively, both sides will be looking at this fixture as a big opportunity to get a win on the board.

These sides last met in the league in the 2015/16 Premier League season. Norwich won this one 4-2 that year, with Watford coming out on top 2-0 in the reverse.

Grant Hanley, Christoph Zimmerman and Timm Klose are out for the home side, with Danny Welbeck, Troy Deeney, Ismaila Sarr and Domingos Quina on the side-lines for Watford.

It's five defeats in their last six in the league now for the Canaries as their early season promise seems to be drying up. Of most concern to Daniel Farke is the fact that his side have only managed to score twice across those six fixtures. For a side whose strength had looked to lie in attack, that is a big worry. On the plus side, they are yet to draw a blank at home.

The wait for a first win meanwhile goes on for Watford. Without a victory in their first eleven fixtures, they need to stop the rot soon. Three draws in their last four does offer some slight encouragement, but it is the win that they need. Having scored only twice in five away fixtures, they are going to ned to show much more in the attacking third.

Two sides struggling for from here, and it really could go either way. For us though Norwich do still boast the bigger goal threat and, with home advantage in their favour, can add to Watford's woes.

Prediction: Norwich City 2 - 1 Watford

[Harry85]

Half time: 0 - 1
Full time: 0 - 2
Shots: 17 - 12
Shots on target: 5 - 2
Corner Kicks: 10 - 4
Possession: 66% - 34%


Just the one booking for the home side, with substitute Mario Vrancic seeing yellow. Will Hughes and Adam Masina of Watford also had their names taken by referee Andre Marriner, whilst Christian Kabasele of the visitors was dismissed for a second yellow in the 65th minute.


It was a dream start for Watford, with the visitors taking the lead in just the second minute. Gerard Deulofeu robbing Emiliano Buendia just inside the Norwich half to the right and making a beeline for goal. The defence backing off and allowing the Spaniard to advance into the area, drift to the centre and finish really nicely into the bottom left.


Norwich really came back into well having fallen behind, and were exerting just about all of the pressure in the rest of the first half, with Onel Hernandez in particular causing havoc down the left. As good as they looked at times in general play though, that final ball or finish was sadly lacking. 0-1 at the break.


Having scored the first himself, Deulofeu then turned provider for the killer second goal seven minutes into the second half. Found in space down the left, his initial cross was blocked but he picked out Andre Gray with his second ball. Gray improvising well to try a back-heeled finish from seven yards or so and the ball taking a big deflection on its way into the bottom left.


The sending off of Kabasele gave Norwich a real chance to get back into it, and whilst they huffed and puffed, it never really looked likely in all honesty. 0-2 it finished.


A first win of the season for Watford lifts them up to eighteenth. Norwich slump to the foot of the table.