Fulham vs. Watford: FA Cup Match Preview, Odds & Prediction

On Thursday night, Fulham will host Championship team Watford at Craven Cottage for an FA Cup third-round match, putting Premier League responsibilities on hold.

This is the first meeting between the two clubs since April 2019, when the Hornets won 4-1 at Vicarage Road in the Premier League.

Previous Matches and Head-to-head

Fulham have gone eight games without a loss in the Premier League, but they've also drawn six of those games and only managed to rescue a point in last Sunday's 2-2 draw with Ipswich Town.

Raul Jimenez saved the Cottagers from losing against the Tractor Boys with two second-half penalties, helping Fulham come from behind twice and escape defeat. Only Brighton & Hove Albion have shared the spoils more often this season with ten.

After the game, Marco Silva expressed his displeasure with referee Darren Bond, claiming that Bond's performance "was not at the level the Premier League demands" in the first half when Leif Davis of Ipswich escaped a red card for a last-man foul. Despite this, Fulham are only six points separating the top four teams in the league and now lie in ninth place.

Fulham will play host to Watford in the FA Cup third round for the sixth year in a row before getting ready for what seem to be favorable league matches against West Ham United and Leicester City.

The team that finished second in 1975 has advanced from 13 of their last 16 third-round matches and has won all four FA Cup matches against lower-league opponents. However, in their last six matches against Watford, they have gone winless (D3 L3) and have let 14 goals in.

Watford, who are playing in the Championship for the third year in a row, had a good start but have since lost four of their past five matches, dropping them out of the playoff places and into ninth place.

In their last three games, the Hornets have suffered defeats at the hands of Cardiff City, Queens Park Rangers, and Sheffield United. Last weekend, they were downed 2-1 at home by Sheffield United. Additionally, in their past seven matches, they have not managed to maintain a clean sheet.

Tom Cleverley, the head coach, has said that his team's recent performance has shown their "fragilities" and that he feels a "big ask" and "probably the biggest challenge I've ever faced in this industry" to turn the club's fortunes around.

Later this month, they'll face Cardiff, Derby County, and Preston North End. However, before that, they'll focus on the FA Cup, where they finished in second place in 1984 and 2019.

As a team, Watford has only advanced from one of their last five FA Cup third-round matches (a 2-1 victory over Chesterfield last season), but they have good reason to be optimistic about Thursday's matchup thanks to their three wins in their last four meetings against Fulham and their perfect record on home turf at Craven Cottage.

Fulham x Watford Team News

While Fulham's Sander Berge might make a comeback from his ankle injury, Reiss Nelson (hamstring), Kenny Tete (knee), and Harrison Reed (both knees) will likely stay out of action.

While deciding whether to return to a four-person defense or continue with a three-at-the-back formation, Silva will think about rotating his squad in a few spots. Two players that have been named will be competing for the starting back position: Jorge Cuenca and Ryan Sessegnon.

Smith, Emile Attackers Adama Traore and Rodrigo Muniz will be vying for starting roles, while midfielder Rowe, who has only played twice as a substitute since returning from injury, might start.

Speaking of Watford, goalkeeper Daniel Bachmann will miss up to three months of action after tearing a ligament in his ankle late last weekend's loss to Sheffield United. Thus, Jonathan Bond will begin his career with a goal.

Midfielder Imran Louza returned from sickness to play the whole match last time out, while defender Angelo Ogbonna played for little over an hour after missing over twelve weeks with a hamstring injury; Tom Dele-Bashiru is still questionable to return from a knee injury.

On the left wing-back position, Jeremy Ngakia is in the running to keep his starting spot after scoring Watford's first senior goal last weekend. Other candidates for recall include Vakoun Issouf Bayo, Moussa Sissoko, Tom Ince, and Ryan Porteous.

Our predictions

Fulham to win & over 2.5 goals @ 1.71 on Sky247.ng

Fulham and Watford have met three times in the FA Cup, with the Hornets taking the first two (1932 and 1983) and the Cottagers taking the 2005 match. Each time, the match went to a replay.

We expect the home team to capitalize on the away team's bad record and go to the fourth round, regardless of how many changes Silva makes, since there will be no replays at this game stage. Thursday's match might be just as close.

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