Watford vs Bournemouth
Football : England : Premier League
Saturday 1st October - Kickoff 15:00
Football : England : Premier League
Saturday 1st October - Kickoff 15:00
Watford
Watford were poor in the recent Monday night loss at Burnley (2-0). The defeat leaves the Hornets down in 11th place and puts an end to their 2 game winning run.
Watford won at West Ham (2-4) and then against Manchester United (3-1) so it was surprising to see them not only blank at Burnley but also lose quite easily.
At home Watford have faced some strong sides in Chelsea, Arsenal and Manchester United. They lost the first 2 games but responded well with the defeat of United.
The Hornets have netted in 7 straight home league games but are now 8 without a clean sheet. With no clean sheets both home or away this season Watford have conceded 2 goals or more in 4/6 games.
Bournemouth
Bournemouth recorded their 2nd win of the season and their 2nd in 3 games defeating Everton (1-0) last weekend. The win moves the Cherries into 13th place ahead of Saturday's visit to Watford.
Bournemouth have lost just 1/4 league games now but have only taken 1 point away from home. Both of their recent wins came at Dean Court and it's now 5 games without an away win.
Head To Head
Bournemouth and Watford have each won one, drew four, and lost one of their last six meetings with one another.
Stats
Bournemouth have lost 71% of their last seven away days in the Premier League.
Team News
Jerome Sinclair, Darryl Janmaat, and Stefano Okaka are all expected to be out until the second half of October.
Adam Smith is a doubt for this clash, but Ryan Fraser is expected to shake off a knock and be ready for action.
Scoring just 1 goal in 3 away games is a worry. However, Bournemouth's scoring record away at the bottom half of the table sides last season was decent. Bournemouth netted at least once in 8/9 games with the blank ironically coming at Watford in a 0-0 draw.
Betting Verdict
Watford games tend to be quite open and Monday's loss is the first time both sides haven't scored in their league games this season.Bournemouth have goals in them against the bottom half but this year they have had 2 visits to top half teams and they in fact scored at bottom half Crystal Palace.
Both sides had very good records when playing the bottom half of the table. Watford at home finished; 4-4-1 and Bournemouth away; 4-3-2. It's no shock that these 2 sides couldn't be split last season drawing both encounters.
All 3 of Watford's home games this year have gone over 2.50. The Hornets haven't kept any clean sheets and I expect Bournemouth to net at least once despite their blanks at Manchester City and West Ham.
I expect a more open game this Saturday with Watford looking for all 3 points. But with both games ending in a draw last year I'm put off taking either side. Likewise the over's which stands out also puts me off in case of a 1-1 scoreline.
This leaves me with both sides to score, it's occurred heavily in Watford games this season and in 9/10 Bournemouth away games to sides finishing in the bottom half last season. It's odds on but a price I'm happy to take which covers us for the 1-1 draw.
