Preston North End vs Watford Prediction and Betting Tips | December 16th 2023

The EFL Championship returns with a fresh set of fixtures as Preston North End and Watford lock horns at the Deepdale Stadium on Saturday.

Ryan Lowe’s men will head into the weekend looking to get one over the Hornets, having failed to win the last four meetings between the sides.

Preston North End returned to winning ways in style as they edged out Huddersfield Town 3-1 at the John Smith's Stadium on Wednesday.

Prior to that, Lowe’s side were on a four-game winless run, suffering three back-to-back defeats before playing out a goalless draw with Norwich City on December 9.

With 32 points from 21 games, Preston are currently eighth in the EFL Championship table, two points off the promotion playoff places.

Watford, on the other hand, were left spitting feathers at the weekend as they fell to a 2-1 home loss against Ipswich Town.

Valérien Ismael’s men were previously on a three-game undefeated run, picking up seven points from a possible nine.

With 28 points from 21 matches, Watford are currently 12th in the league standings but could move level with ninth-placed Blackburn Rovers with all three points this weekend.

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Preston North End vs Watford Head-To-Head and Key Numbers

• With 18 wins from the last 46 meetings between the sides, Preston North End boasts a superior record in the history of this fixture.
• Watford have picked up 13 wins in that time, while the spoils have been shared on 15 occasions.
• The Hornets are on a four-game unbeaten run against Preston, claiming two wins and two draws since a 1-0 loss in August 2015.
• Lowe’s men are winless in five of their last six home games, losing three and claiming two draws since late September.
• Watford have lost just one of their last five away matches while picking up two wins and two draws since the first week of October.

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Preston North End vs Watford Prediction

Preston and Watford head into the weekend off the back of contrasting results, with the hosts snapping their four-game winless run in midweek.

However, Watford have been solid away from home of late and we predict they will do just enough to force a share of the spoils.

Prediction: Preston North End 1-1 Watford

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Preston North End vs Watford Betting Tips

Tip 1: Draw

Tip 2: Over 2.5 goals - No (There have been fewer than three goals scored in four of the last five meetings between the sides)

Tip 3: Over 4.5 cards - No (There have also been fewer than five bookings in eight of their last 10 encounters)