Manchester City v Watford: The Opposition
09/23/2024 06:15 PM
A Look at City's League Cup Opponents
Manchester City take on Watford in the League Cup on Tuesday night as the matches start to come thick and fast for Pep Guardiola's side. It will be just over 48 hours since City's dramatic 2-2 draw with Arsenal at the Etihad Stadium and it is likely that Guardiola will use some heavy squad rotation against their Championship opposition.
Watford are spending their third season in the Championship since being relegated from the Premier League in 2022, but have so far shown no signs of making a return to the top flight. An 11th-place finish in 2023 was followed by a dismal 15th placing last season. However, for a team that changed their manager more times than City in the 80s, they have stuck with the current boss and they may now start reaping the rewards.
Form
Watford haven't made a bad start to the new season. They sit in 8th place with three ins from six matches, but their defence is still an issue. While they have scored ten, Watford have conceded nine, giving them the leakiest defence in the top half of the table.
The Hornets won their first three league games of the season, winning 3-2 at Millwall on the opening day, before beating Stoke and Derby County, 3-0 and 2-0 respectively. In between, they thrashed MK Dons (5-0) and beat Plymouth Argyle (2-0) to set up the League Cup clash with City.
Sadly, Watford lost two of their following three matches, 1-0 at Sheffield United and 4-1 at Norwich, with a 1-1 draw at home to Coventry City sandwiched between them.
Ones to Watch
Including the League Cup, Watford have knocked in 17 goals, with Edo Kayembe, Tom Ince and Mileta Rajovic amongst the top scorers. Kayembe has three goals, all in the league, as does Ince, however all of his have come in the League Cup, bagging a treble against MK Dons. Rajovic has scored one league goal and two in the victory over Plymouth that sent the Hornets north.
Giorgi Chakvetadze is the main threat from midfield, creating 19 chances for the Hornets this season, with only two taken. In the league, he has attempted 201 passes, completed 176 and achieved a pass accuracy of 84%.
The Boss
Former United man Tom Cleverley is the man in charge at Vicarage Road. Cleverley was appointed the latest Watford boss in March this year, having spent six years at the club as a player. He has overseen 17 games as Watford manager, winning seven and losing four, giving him a win ratio of 41%.
Last Meeting in Manchester
Manchester has not been a happy hunting ground for Watford over the years. Their last visit to the Etihad Stadium was April 2022 when City won 5-1. Tuesday will be the second meeting between the two in the League Cup.
