Watford will host West Bromwich Albion in Javi Gracia’s first home game since returning to the Hornets.
Sacked head coach Paulo Pezzolano lasted just 10 games in charge and became the club’s 12th boss since Gracia’s first spell ended in 2019.
Despite a poor start to the season, Pezzolano had collected seven points from his final three matches as Watford climbed to 11th, but it wasn’t enough to save him from the Hornets’ managerial merry-go-round.
Gracia’s previous 20-month reign made him the club’s longest-serving manager in the past 14 years, during which he guided the Hornets to their best-ever Premier League finish of 11th and an FA Cup final.
Ryan Mason’s West Bromwich Albion side will be looking to spoil the homecoming, having just recorded a superb home win against high-flying Preston.
The Baggies now sit comfortably in fifth place in the EFL Championship, just four points off the automatic promotion spots.
Team News
Watford boss Javi Gracia will have a near full-strength squad to choose from for his Vicarage Road homecoming.
Giorgi Chakvetadze has continued his recovery by training on grass as he works his way back from a complex foot injury.
Meanwhile, Jack Grieves is also progressing from a lower-leg problem, while Othmane Maamma has returned to London after winning the U20 World Cup with Morocco.
Ryan Mason’s West Brom squad was boosted ahead of the clash with Preston by the return of Karlan Grant and Daryl Dike to the matchday 18.
However, Toby Collyer is now unavailable having sustained a hamstring injury after coming off in the 55th minute of the win over Preston. Jed Wallace is also sidelined with a muscular issue.
Predicted Lineups
Watford:
Egil Selvik (GK), Jeremy Ngakia, Kevin Keben, Matthew Pollock, Marc Bola, Imran Louza, Hector Kyprianou, Moussa Sissoko, Edo Kayembe, Tom Ince, Nestory Irankunda
West Bromwich Albion:
Josh Griffiths (GK), George Campbell, Nat Phillips, Chris Mepham, Charlie Taylor, Alex Mowatt, Jayson Molumby, Isaac Price, Mikey Johnston, Samuel Iling-Junior, Josh Maja
Players To Watch
Watford: Tom Ince
The 33-year-old fell out of favour under former boss Paulo Pezzolano but was handed his first league minutes since the opening day of the season by Javi Gracia at the weekend.
The experienced winger made 36 appearances for the Hornets in all competitions last season and can provide balance to a squad that underwent a major overhaul in the summer, with 13 new arrivals.
He boasts an impressive record of four goals and three assists against West Brom in his career to date and will be looking to add to that on Wednesday night.
West Brom: Mikey Johnston
The Republic of Ireland international has made a flying start to the season, scoring a screamer against Preston at the weekend to lift Albion up to fifth in the league.
The 26-year-old has five goal involvements so far this campaign — just three fewer than he managed throughout the entire 2024/25 season, despite playing 31 fewer matches.
Following the departure of Tom Fellows to Southampton in the summer, Johnston has become Mason’s biggest attacking threat and a player capable of creating something out of nothing.
Previous Meetings
West Bromwich Albion 2-1 Watford, April 2025
West Brom defeated Watford at home thanks to goals from Karlan Grant and Mikey Johnston, with Moussa Sissoko scoring a consolation for the visitors.
The two managers at the time — Tony Mowbray for West Brom and Tom Cleverley for Watford — both found themselves sacked before the following season after a poor run of results.
Watford 2-1 West Bromwich Albion, December 2024
Watford were victorious in the last meeting between the two sides at Vicarage Road.
Forward Vakoun Bayo scored a brace to give the home side a two-goal lead before Jayson Molumby pulled one back, but it wasn’t enough to spark a late comeback.
West Bromwich Albion 2-2 Watford, April 2024
There was late drama at The Hawthorns as the Baggies fought back to rescue a point.
After a goalless first half, Edo Kayembe gave Tom Cleverley’s team the lead with an incredible strike, before Mileta Rajović doubled their advantage.
Brandon Thomas-Asante — now leading the charts for Coventry — pulled one back, before a stunning strike from Darnell Furlong in the closing minutes helped Carlos Corberán’s side earn a point.
Key Statistics
- Watford are on a seven-match unbeaten run against West Bromwich Albion at Vicarage Road (W4, D3). The last time the Baggies won at the home of the Hornets was back in November 2007.
- Both meetings between Watford and West Bromwich Albion in the 2023/24 and 2024/25 campaigns ended in the same scorelines. The two matches in 2023/24 finished 2-2, while in 2024/25, the home team recorded 2-1 triumphs.
- One or both teams have scored exactly two goals in all of the last five head-to-head fixtures.
- This will be Javi Gracia’s second league meeting with West Brom, winning the other 1-0 with Watford in the Premier League in March 2018.
