Watford vs Tranmere Predictions

• Watford have claimed 10 points from their last four games as they look to leave the relegation places in the Premier League.
• Tranmere have just one win in eight in League One and find themselves in the relegation zone with less than half the season left to play.
• Watford enjoyed a visit to Wembley last season, reaching the final of this competition before a humbling 6-0 defeat to Man City in the final.
• Tranmere had an equally disappointing result in the FA Cup last season, losing 7-0 to Tottenham in the fourth round.

Can Watford bring their great league form to the cup?

A few weeks ago this fixture might’ve looked like a real worry for Watford as they sat bottom of the Premier League with just one win all season. But the appointment of Nigel Pearson has reinvigorated their campaign, with the Hertfordshire side winning three of the last four games and scoring eight goals in that time. While they remain in the relegation zone they are in a much healthier position and will be keen to add a cup win to their recent form.

Watford were averaging 0.5 goals per game before Pearson joined the club, showing just how far they’ve come in a short space of time; they’ve also been able to improve defensively, conceding just two goals in their past four, compared to 30 in 17 prior to their good run of form. They will be much more confident of avoiding the embarrassment of a cup defeat to a team in League One and will be confident of ending the weekend in the pot for the fourth round.

Tranmere travel with nothing to lose

Tranmere haven’t enjoyed a successful season so far, winning just five games this term and struggling to get out of the League One relegation zone in recent weeks. They’ve picked up just one win in their last eight games and haven’t been able to win consecutive games at all this season. They’ve scored a decent amount, 1.17 goals per game on average, but have really struggled in defence, conceding 43 goals which translates to just under two goals a game.

The FA Cup hasn’t been too kind to Tranmere recently with the club losing 7-0 to Tottenham in the fourth round last year. They needed a replay to beat Southport in the third round and haven’t had much success in the years preceding that game either. A cup run, while being welcome financially, means the club run the risk of losing sight of their relegation plight and there are many reasons the side would be better off on the losing end this weekend.

Will the magic of the FA Cup return Watford this weekend?

With their current form, it’s hard to see anything other than a Watford win this weekend and, unfortunately for us, this is represented in the odds with The Hornets being heavy favourites coming into the game.

There is a little bit of value in the goals market, though, and we’re using this to our advantage by predicting Watford will score 2 or more goals this weekend. The Watford over 1.5 goal line looks to be a good selection with the Premier League outfit really finding their feet in front of goal.

Watford should be comfortable winners this weekend but the FA Cup always throws up some excitement and we think Tranmere will find the net. We think the 3-1 result looks like giving real value, indicating Watford superiority while also giving Tranmere a goal, in a match they will have plenty of adrenaline running for.