Preview: Watford vs Blackburn Rovers - prediction, team news, lineups

Watford and Blackburn Rovers will both be looking to claim their second wins of the Championship season when they lock horns at Vicarage Road on Saturday.

The Hornets are currently in 14th spot in the Championship table with five points to their name, while Rovers are two points adrift in 19th spot.

Match preview

Paulo Pezzolano has experienced a mixed start to life as a Championship manager, having recorded one win, two draws and one defeat in his first four league games as Watford boss.

Pezzolano has at least overseen a three-game unbeaten streak since starting his tenure with back-to-back defeats against Charlton Athletic and Norwich City in the league and EFL Cup respectively.

After bouncing back with a 2-1 win over Queens Park Rangers, Watford went on to play out consecutive draws against Swansea City and Southampton.

The Hornets came from behind on two occasions in their most recent outing against the Saints, with Nestory Irankunda netting a long-range free kick to salvage a 2-2 draw.

While his team may be unbeaten in three matches, Pezzolano will want to see his side improve in the defensive third, considering that they are one of eight clubs yet to keep a clean sheet in the Championship this season.

The Hornets may be able to draw inspiration from the fact that they recorded a shutout in last season’s home clash against Blackburn Rovers, with their 1-0 victory representing their third win in the past five head-to-head home games.

After falling two points short of the playoffs last term, Blackburn will have aspirations of going at least one place better in the 2025-26 campaign.

However, their playoff bid has got off to a shaky start, having seen their first four league games produce three defeats (W1).

Rovers started the campaign with league defeats against West Bromwich Albion and Birmingham City, either side of a 2-1 loss to League One Bradford City in the EFL Cup.

Blackburn looked to have instilled some confidence when they cruised to a 3-0 away victory over Hull City in their third Championship outing of the season, only to be brought down to earth by a 2-0 home loss to Norwich City.

As a result of their poor start, Rovers are now at risk of suffering four defeats in the opening five league games of a season for the first time since 2016-17

Ex-Watford boss Valerien Ismael can at least take some confidence from the 2-1 victory that his team picked up in April’s home clash against his former club, with Blackburn now looking to claim back-to-back league wins over Watford for the first time in 13 years.

Watford Championship form:

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Watford form (all competitions):

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Blackburn Rovers Championship form:

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Blackburn Rovers form (all competitions):

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Team News

Watford are likely to be without Caleb Wiley, Pierre Dwomoh, Jak Greaves and Giorgi Chakvetadze due to injury.

Midfielder Imran Louza is set to serve the final game of a three-match suspension after being sent off in last month's win over QPR.

Right-back Jeremy Petris and central defender Formose Mendy could feature in the squad after joining the Hornets on deadline day.

As for the visitors, they are unable to call upon the injured duo of Adam Forshaw and Jake Garrett, while McLoughlin is suspended following his dismissal against Norwich.

McLoughlin's ban and Dominic Hyam's recent exit could see Ismael field a central-defensive pairing of Lewis Miller and Scott Wharton.

Midfielder Taylor Gardner-Hickman and forward Andri Gudjohnsen are likely to feature on the bench following the deadline day moves.

Watford possible starting lineup:

Selvik; Ngakia, Keben, Abankwah, Bola; Sissoko, Kyprianou, Kayembe; Irankunda, Baah, Kjerrumgaard

Blackburn Rovers possible starting lineup:

Toth; Alebiosu, Miller, Wharton, Ribeiro; Tronstad, Tavares; Kargbo, Cantwell, Hedges; Ohashi

We say: Watford 3-1 Blackburn Rovers

Watford have taken four points from their opening two home league games, and considering they have won three of their last five home matches against Blackburn, we think that the Hornets will prevail in Saturday's clash at Vicarage Road.

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