Nottingham Forest v Watford Preview

Posted on | February 10, 2012 | No Comments

Expectations for these two sides were the complete opposite at the start of the campaign, with Nottingham Forest regarded as genuine title contenders while Watford were expected to struggle immensely. Bearing this in mind, it seems incredible to look at the league table, with Forest in all sorts of trouble as they occupy 23rd position while Watford are comfortable, as the Hornets sit in 16th.

Anything that could have gone wrong for Nottingham Forest this season has done, with Forest in a disastrous position which sees them sat five points adrift of safety. To make their campaign even more dour, the club were hit by some tragic news last week after owner Nigel Doughty died suddenly. Forest have yet to play a fixture since that awful incident, with their game against Derby postponed due to the icy weather conditions. Steve Cotterill may have been slightly grateful for that break in the schedule, with Forest currently on a dreadful run of form which has seen them lose their last four games. There also appear to be some severe problems with their home form, with the club currently without a win in their last seven at the City Ground.

Watford on the other hand are having a very successful campaign by their own standards, with the Hornets well clear of the relegation zone in 16th position. This means that Sean Dyche’s side are currently twelve points above the drop zone and looking at that statistic, it would take an absurd turn of events for the Vicarage Road outfit to be relegated. It would be fair to say that Watford went on something of a sticky patch several weeks ago, but having won their last two games they are certainly back in full flow. Furthermore, even though top scorer Marvin Sordell left for Bolton at the end of the transfer window, Watford appeared to show no ill-effects through his departure as they coasted to victory over Barnsley in their last clash.

Nottingham Forest have attempted to boost their chances of survival in recent weeks by making three loan signings. Danny Higginbotham, Scott Wootton and George Elokobi are all still awaiting to make their debuts and following Forest’s recent poor form, Steve Cotterill could decide to include all three in his starting eleven. On a sourer note, Greg Cunningham will not be featuring as a hamstring issue hinders him. Watford on the other hand have absolutely no fresh issues, although Malky Mackay will still be without Stephen McGinn and Martin Taylor as they struggle with their long-term issues.

All of the statistics suggest that Watford will be victors in this game. However, with all of the off-the-field events at Nottingham Forest over the past week, we think the home team will be inspired and record a narrow 1-0 win in this clash.

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