Brentford vs Watford: Premier League preview, team news, stats, prediction, TV channel, kick-off time

Team news, stats and prediction ahead of Brentford vs Watford in the Premier League on Friday Night Football; kick-off 8pm.

Team news

Brentford will be without suspended forward Sergi Canos and striker Ivan Toney for the Premier League match against Watford.

The versatile Canos, who has played at wing-back in the Premier League this season, sits out a one-game ban after receiving his fifth booking in Sunday's draw at Leeds.

Toney is still unavailable after missing out at Elland Road due to Covid-19, but defender Mads Bech Sorensen is back in contention after recovering from the virus.

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Watford could have winger Ken Sema back in contention after he returned to full training this week following a knee problem.

The Hornets, though, will again be without left-back Adam Masina, who picked up a minor thigh strain during the defeat against Chelsea.

Defender Francisco Sierralta (hamstring) is stepping up his recovery, while Ismaila Sarr (knee), goalkeeper Ben Foster (hip), Nicolas Nkoulou, Peter Etebo (thigh) and Kwadwo Baah (ankle) all remain sidelined.

How to follow

Live FNF

Brentford vs Watford is live on Sky Sports Premier League from 7pm on Friday; kick-off 8pm. Sky Sports customers can watch in-game clips in the live match blog on the Sky Sports website and app. Highlights will also be published on the Sky Sports digital platforms and the Sky Sports Football YouTube channel shortly after the final whistle.

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• Watch free highlights of this game after full-time

Last time out...

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Opta stats

• This will be the first-ever top-flight meeting between Brentford and Watford, with the two sides having already previously met in the second, third and fourth tiers of English football.
• Brentford are unbeaten in their last eight league games played on a Friday (W6 D2) since a 2-0 home loss to Fulham in November 2016. The Bees' first ever Premier League game was a 2-0 victory over Arsenal, played on the opening Friday of this campaign.
• Watford are the only team yet to keep a clean sheet in the Premier League this season, while the Hornets have conceded more Premier League goals than any other side since Claudio Ranieri's first game in charge (19).
• Brentford's first eight home Premier League goals have all been scored by different players (Canós, Nørgaard, Pinnock, Janelt, Wissa, Zanka, Henry & Toney), only the third team in Premier League history to achieve that, after Liverpool (first nine) and Wimbledon (first nine), both in 1992.
• Watford's Josh King has been directly involved in nine goals in his last nine away starts in the Premier League (6 goals, 3 assists), although the Norwegian has only found the net in two of his 26 away appearances in London, scoring against Crystal Palace in 2016 and 2019 for Bournemouth.

Premier League Preview - Rangnick's impact at Man Utd | Newcastle aiming to double up | Chelsea's dip

Alice Piper is joined by Sky Sports football journalists Ron Walker, Charlotte Marsh and Ben Grounds to look ahead to the Premier League weekend.

PART 1 | Ralf Rangnick's start at Manchester United goes under the microscope ahead of their trip to Norwich. Plus, Steven Gerrard goes back to Anfield for the first time as a manager, when Aston Villa face Liverpool. We look at his start in the Midlands and that romantic return.

PART 2 | Leicester host Newcastle on Sunday, with Eddie Howe looking to land back-to-back wins for the Magpies. We assess their chances of doing that. Plus, after Everton's last-gasp win over Arsenal, we build up to their Super Sunday clash with Crystal Palace and debate what Rafa Benitez must do to build on that victory.

PART 3 | We preview the Friday Night Football clash between Brentford and Watford, which starts a pivotal run of games for Claudio Ranieri's side, and also take a look at Chelsea's recent drop in form.

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