Coventry v Watford: Tight tussle forecast for St Andrew's

Coventry v Watford
Saturday February 6, 12:30
Sky Sports

Coventry suffer midweek setback

Coventry suffered a disappointing setback on Tuesday night as the Sky Blues fell to a 2-1 reverse at home to bottom-half rivals Nottingham Forest at St Andrew's. A Michael Rose own goal just after the break handed the visitors the full three points after Max Biamou's brilliant 17th minute strike was cancelled out by an easy finish from Lewis Grabban.

Nevertheless, Coventry boss Mark Robins took some consolation from his side's determined fight-back as the Sky Blues laid siege to the Forest goal in an impressive second half showing, with the City manager claiming post-match that his opposite number Chris Hughton must have left St Andrew's a relieved man after claiming all three points.

It was a tough night for Cov with Amadou Bakayoko and Ben Sheaf both withdrawn through injuries, ruling the duo out of Saturday's showdown. Elsewhere, COVID-related issues meant Kyle McFadzean and Ben Wilson were missing from the matchday squad, although the former could return to the fold here after completing a 10-day period of isolation.

Watford fall to shock loss

Watford's bid for an immediate return to the Premier League suffered a surprising blow on Monday night as the Hornets were turned over 2-1 by QPR at Vicarage Road. Boasting the best home record across the top four English divisions, Xisco Munoz's men strangely subdued and unable to hold onto a second-half lead delivered via Troy Deeney's penalty.

The hosts had tabled 10 triumphs in 13 Vicarage Road fixtures pre-match and looked likely to extend that streak when Deeney powered home his third goal in four games. However, a miserable night was compounded when Rangers levelled 17 minutes from time, before striking the decisive second blow in stoppage-time following some lacklustre defending.

Munoz took responsibility for the below-par showing post-match, claiming his team played without passion or intensity. He said, "I am responsible for today's game. It was my mistake because I did not give important words before the game and we started without intensity and ambition, and our passion. Without this intensity it is impossible."

Hornets too short to support

Watford have enjoyed supremacy in league showdowns with Coventry over the past 15 years. The Hornets have tabled seven victories in their past 12 contests with the Sky Blues (W7-D3-L2), including an action-packed 3-2 success when the sides crossed swords at Vicarage Road in November - Ismaila Sarr's penalty seven minutes from time settling matters.

Coventry 4.2016/5 have claimed top honours on only seven occasions since promotion and the Sky Blues are enduring an inconsistent run, posting W2-D3-L4 since mid-December. Mark Robins' men have been turned over just three times at St Andrew's this season but have fallen short against the league's elite, returning W1-D4-L8 against top-half teams.

Inconsistency between home and away performances continues to impede Watford's 2.0421/20 promotion push. Only 15 (32%) of the Hornets' 47-point tally have been earned on the road with the visitors collecting a paltry three triumphs on their travels (W3-D6-L4). Exclude the bottom-five and the guests have returned only W1-D4-L1 on the road since demotion.

Half-time stalemate appeals

Coventry have struck twice or more just once in seven St Andrew's showdowns against sides outside of the bottom-eight as 54% of the Sky Blues' overall goals tally coming in games against the teams in the bottom-third of the division. The hosts have also tended to struggle defensively when taking on the league's elite, regularly shipping multiple goals.

Despite their lofty position, Watford have managed only seven goals across their 13 road trips with matches producing an average of just 1.23 goals - 11 of those fixtures delivered Under 2.5 Goals 1.664/6 - and the market is again anticipating a low-scoring showdown.

In a tricky betting heat, it may pay to back the Half-Time Draw at evens. It's a ploy that's paid out in 32/54 (59%) of the sides combined league fixtures this term, including 17/27 (63%) when viewing only home and away records. Remarkably, 10 of Coventry's 13 outings at St Andrew's have seen honours even at the interval.