Sheffield Wednesday vs Watford prediction, preview, team news and more | EFL Championship 2020-21

Sheffield Wednesday versus Watford will be the game Championship fans keep their eyes on the most this weekend.

Two heavyweights of the second tier go head to head on Saturday when The Hornets fly over to the Owls in a game where the footballing quality should be sky-high.

Sheffield Wednesday started the 2020-21 season with a 12-point deduction after breaching EFL finance regulations last term.

They began their route back to ground zero with a 2-0 win away at Cardiff City – a vitally important result with every game carrying increased importance because of the points sanction.

Watford also got their campaign off to a nice start, beating Middlesbrough 1-0 at home thanks to a Craig Cathcart header.

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Sheffield Wednesday vs Watford Head-to-Head

These clubs go toe-to-toe for the first time since May 2015, when they shared the spoils following a 1-1 draw.

Watford have lost just one of their last six games against their opponents and last lost at Hillsborough in November 2012.

However, it is Sheffield Wednesday who have the best head-to-head record, winning in 22 of their 47 encounters.

Watford have won 16 while there have been nine draws between the two since their first face-off in December 1970.

⏪ We've enjoyed our trips to Hillsborough over the years but not many are better than this one...#ThrowbackThursday pic.twitter.com/Zw33bEizdg

— Watford Football Club (@WatfordFC) September 17, 2020

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Sheffield Wednesday vs Watford Team News

Tom Lees, Barry Bannan and Kadeem Harris were the only survivors from last season's opening day fixture who featured in this campaign's first game against Cardiff City.

They will most likely make the cut this Saturday, while attackers Jordan Rhodes and Josh Windass are set to be given the nod again after both opened their Championship accounts for the season last weekend.

Izzy Brown played well too, and is also expected to start.

Injured: Chey Dunkley, Osaze Urhoghide

Doubtful: Liam Shaw

Suspended: None

Watford had no less than 11 players unavailable for their opener against Middlesbrough and most of them are set to miss this weekend's fixture too.

Gerard Deulofeu remains a doubt, although if he can play, he will be picked, while the club confirmed captain Troy Deeney will not return to training until next week. And that's just the start of it.

Meanwhile, Joao Pedro caught the eye with his superb performance last week and is set to lead the line once more.

Injured: Troy Deeney, Danny Welbeck, Etienne Capoue, Roberto Pereyra, Andre Gray, Will Hughes, Dayrl Janmaat, Isaac Success, Ismaila Sarr

Doubtful: Gerard Deulofeu

Suspended: None

GM 💬 “Chey Dunkley went for a check up scan and we’re really happy with it.“He’s missed a lot of football, so it’s a case of building up his fitness now. “Osaze is back in training and might need a game with the 23s. Other than that, the squad is at full health.” #swfc pic.twitter.com/TRonSrmeUo

— Sheffield Wednesday (@swfc) September 17, 2020

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Sheffield Wednesday vs Watford Predicted XI

Sheffield Wednesday predicted XI (3-4-1-2): Cameron Dawson, Dominic Iorfa, Tom Lees, Joost van Aken, Kadeem Harris, Massimo Luongo, Barry Bannan, Matt Penny, Izzy Brown, Josh Windass, Jordan Rhodes

Watford predicted XI (5-4-1): Ben Foster, Jeremy Ngakia, Craig Cathcart, Christian Kabasele, Ben Wilmot, Kiko Femenia, Domingos Quina, Tom Cleverley, Nathaniel Chalobah, Gerard Deulofeu, Joao Pedro

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Sheffield Wednesday vs Watford Prediction

Both sides have solid defences but Watford's attack is by far superior, both due to the wealth of Premier League experience the visitors offer and also due to the fact that Wednesday lost their top goal scorer of last season, Steven Fletcher, to Stoke City this summer.

You can be sure Sheffield Wednesday will not give up without a fight though, so much so that they might earn a result from the game.

Prediction: Sheffield Wednesday 1-1 Watford