Watford vs West Brom predictions: Promotion hopefuls could cancel each other out

- Watford have drawn four of their last five games 
- West Brom have won just one of their last four in the league 
- Recommended bet: Draw

Watford and West Brom both maintain promotion ambitions and have the chance to reignite their campaigns when they clash on Monday at Vicarage Road.

The Hornets' hunt has been affected by a winless run of five matches which has seen them drop out of the play-off places following wins for Millwall and Blackburn on Saturday.

A victory on Monday will take them back into the top six and they face a Baggies side who have won just one of their last four games in the league to stall their rise, having previously been in danger of the drop.

They currently sit 10th in the standings but a win on Monday will see them move to within a point of the play-off places.

However, with the pair playing out a 1-1 draw back in August, recent form suggests it could be a similar story on Monday.

Team news

Watford pair Ken Sema and Imran Louza could be fit to play the full 90 minutes but Tom Cleverley remains sidelined with a thigh injury.

Craig Cathcart is closing in on full fitness but has not sufficiently recovered from a groin injury, while fellow defender Jeremy Ngakia is also still sidelined with a hamstring problem.

Tom Dele Bashiru (ankle), Samuel Kalu (hamstring) and Edo Kayembe (calf) are also unavailable, while Francisco Sierralta is working his way back from metatarsal surgery and Dan Gosling is still out with an Achilles issue.

West Brom continue to be without Kyle Bartley due to a quadriceps problem, while Matt Phillips has a similar setback.

Tom Rogic is a doubt with a hamstring injury, while Nathanial Chalobah suffered a knock to his knee in Wednesday's 1-1 draw with Blackburn and could be replaced by Jayson Molumby, who opened the scoring off the bench against Rovers.

The stats

The pair's last meeting was a 1-1 draw at The Hawthorns in August, as Karlan Ahearne-Grant cancelled out Ismaila Sarr's opener.

Draws have been an issue for Watford this season, recording 11 ties this campaign, including in four of their last five matches.

The Baggies have drawn nine of their 31 games to date, including against Rovers, but that midweek stalemate was their first share of the points since October.

A lack of an out-and-out goalscorer is hindering these two. Joao Pedro is Watford's leading scorer with nine Championship strikes, while Brandon Thomas-Asante tops the charts for the Baggies with just five league goals.

Prediction

Just two points separate these sides in the Championship table and having drawn earlier in the campaign, these two look tough to split.

Watford boss Slaven Bilic has extra motivation heading into Monday's game, having previously been in charge of West Brom, guiding them to Championship promotion as runners-up in 2019-20.

Opposite number Carlos Corberan fell agonisingly short with Huddersfield in losing last season's play-off final against Nottingham Forest and both know the fine margins that come with taking on those in and around them.

With the teams so well-matched, they could cancel each other out and both would likely accept a share of the spoils.

Back the draw at 9/4 with LiveScore Bet.