Watford vs Burnley preview
Watch match highlights at 5.15pm on skysports.com and the Sky Sports app
Friday 22 November 2019 10:53, UK
Team news, key stats and prediction ahead of Watford vs Burnley in the Premier League.
Team news
Captain Troy Deeney could feature for the first time since August in Watford's Premier League clash against Burnley.
Deeney, sidelined following a knee operation, last played for the Hornets on the second weekend of the season.
Roberto Pereyra (thigh), Tom Cleverley (heel), Domingos Quina (groin), Sebastian Prodl (knee), Daniel Bachmann (hamstring) and Danny Welbeck (hamstring) are ruled out through injury. Christian Kabasele is suspended.
Chris Wood is fit to lead the line for Burnley despite an early return from the international break.
Wood played against the Republic of Ireland but was allowed to skip New Zealand's match against Lithuania on an artificial pitch due to his prior hamstring problems.
Matej Vydra (hip) will not be involved against his former club, with Johann Berg Gudmundsson (hamstring) and Danny Drinkwater also on the sidelines.
How to follow
Follow the action with our dedicated live blog. Highlights of the game will be published at 5.15pm on the Sky Sports website and app plus the Sky Sports Football YouTube channel.
Opta stats
- Watford remained unbeaten in both Premier League meetings with Burnley last season (W1 D1), having lost three of their first four against the Clarets in the competition (W1).
- Burnley have lost just one of their last five away league games against Watford, though three of those have ended level (W1).
- Watford's win at Norwich last time out ended a run of 15 Premier League games without a win (D6 L9), and the Hornets are now looking to secure back-to-back league victories for the first time since February.
- Watford are winless in their last 10 Premier League home games (D4 L6) - they've never gone 11 consecutive home games without a victory in their league history.
- Burnley haven't kept a clean sheet in any of their last 13 away league games, since a goalless draw at Watford in January. The Clarets are winless in their last eight on the road in the Premier League (D4 L4).
- Watford are the only side in the Premier League yet to score from a corner or free-kick situation, with all eight of their goals coming from open play (6) or the penalty spot (2).
- In a league table based on away results only, Burnley would be in 19th place, while the Clarets would be 4th in a league table based on home games. Watford would be 19th in the home table as one of two sides yet to win at home in the Premier League this season.
- No side has used fewer different players in the Premier League this season than Burnley (18), while only Sheffield United (9) have made fewer changes to their starting XIs this season than the Clarets (10).
- After a run of 10 games and 26 shots without a Premier League goal, Watford's Gerard Deulofeu has netted with two of his last four attempts and is looking to score in three consecutive Premier League appearances for the first time.
- Since the start of last season, Burnley's Chris Wood has scored more headed goals than any other player in the Premier League (9), with three of the New Zealander's five strikes this season being scored this way.
Charlie Nicholas' prediction
Quique Sanchez Flores earned a great result with the win at Norwich, finally! He may be feeling some sort of reward now, but he will still be working away on the mental fitness instead of the physical fitness.
I cannot work Burnley out - they are hard to beat and good up front. They were battered at home to Chelsea but missed loads of chances, especially Ashley Barnes. They then go to Sheffield United and get hammered - Burnley are inconsistent and Watford are better than what their results suggest. Troy Deeney should be back fit and he will make a big difference for them.
CHARLIE PREDICTS: 2-1 (17/2 with Sky Bet)
Super 6: Watford to win again?
Just under a third of Super 6 players are backing Watford to make it two wins from two and double their total wins for the season, as they welcome Burnley to Vicarage Road in Saturday's Super 6 round. Who will you pick as the victor when £250k is riding on it? Play for free.
