Chelsea look to take a step closer towards securing a top 4 spot as they host Watford at Stamford Bridge.
Chelsea are currently 4th in the table and with a win here they could move up to 3rd after Tottenham lost this weekend. However with only a 2 point gap above Arsenal and a 3 point gap above Man Utd, the Blues could also drop out of the top 4 if they were to drop points here making this a critical game for Chelsea as they simply need a win.
Meanwhile, Watford are sitting 10th and with Wolves 7 points above them in 7th and with 2 games to go, they are out of the contention to get European football through the league. Watford are essentially playing for nothing at this point other than preparing themselves for the FA Cup Final in a couple of weeks which is going to be their biggest game in years. Watford have had a great season and are a dangerous side so don’t expect them to lay down so easily here.
Chelsea are entering this game on some inconsistent run of form. The Blues have been winless in their last 3 games in the league racking up just 2 points which weirdly enough has managed to keep them in the top 4, however they are coming off a decent performance last week against Man Utd where they picked up a 1-1 draw away from home and could’ve snatched all 3 points had they taken their chance in the end and then followed up with an impressive performance in Frankfurt in Europe where again they got a 1-1 draw but thoroughly outplayed them and deserved a win. Chelsea have only lost 2 of their last 15 games (9W 4D) but have drawn all of their last 3 in all competitions and haven’t won in the league since 8th April so it’s been quite up and down from them.
Watford have had a dip in form lately themselves. Ever since the famous Semi Final win in the FA Cup, they have only managed to pick up 4 points from 4 games with the lone win coming against bottom of the league Huddersfield. Watford are coming off a 1-2 loss to Wolves last week which has pretty much killed off any chance of them getting the 7th place. You could say though that with Deeney being suspended for the last 3 games and the FA Cup Final approaching, the loss of form isn’t surprising for Watford.
Chelsea have been a decent home team this season with only 1 league defeat at Stamford Bridge, but have had a tendency to drop points as they’ve drawn 6 games here while winning 11. It’s a solid home record, but they definitely could be better as they’ve dropped points to the likes of Everton, Wolves, Southampton and most recently Burnley so there has been that tendency for the Blues to drop points against non “big 6” sides at home this season. Chelsea have definitely been a much better team at home than away though especially in 2019 as their record here across all competitions is 11W 3D 1L since the calendar year turn whereas away from home they have lost quite a few games.
Watford have been a pretty good away from home side this season as they have the 8th best record (6W 5D 7L) picking up 23 points which is nearly half of their total league points. Watford have struggled away at big grounds however as they’ve lost to all Arsenal, Man Utd, Spurs, Man City and Liverpool. Not one point at big grounds definitely is a concern for them coming into this game for the visitors.
Eden Hazard is of course the man to watch for Chelsea with 16 goals and 13 assists he nearly has half of total Chelsea’s goals contributions and he’s been in scorching form at home in the league having scored 4G and assisted 2 goals in his last 4 league apps at Stamford Bridge.
As for Watford, you have to say Troy Deeney is the man to watch. With his suspension now over, the clubs tied top scorer will be available to return. He has 9 goals and 5 assists this season and ever since his suspension Watford have initially dipped in form. Deeney got on the scoresheet in back to back games prior to suspension and with him back expect Chelsea’s defence to be seriously tested due to his presence.
Chelsea have won 4 of their last 5 H2H meetings against Watford and have defeated them in the reverse fixture 1-2 as Eden Hazard bagged a brace.
Since Watford’s promotion in 2015, these sides met 3 times at Stamford Bridge and they have had a total of 17 goals as the first meeting ended 2-2 while Chelsea won the next two 4-3 and 4-2. It’s clearly been a fixture that has provided us a lot of goals in recent meetings and Watford have caused Chelsea problems by giving them tough matches here despite not picking up any wins.
Chelsea are tipped as massive bookies favourites to win this game at 1.35 whereas Watford to win is a long shot 9.55 with Draw offered at 5.55. Chelsea are higher in the league and do have the better team and with this game being so important for the Blues you’d have to expect them to get all 3 points at home although Watford will likely put them to a tough test. Odds are based on Unibet.
Team News
Chelsea: Antonio Rudiger and Callum Hudson-Odoi are both out with season ending injuries while Gary Cahill is doubtful though it’s not a worry considering he hasn’t played in 2019 at all.
Watford: Etienne Capoue, Miguel Britos, Sebastian Prodl, Domingos Quina are all ruled out while Craig Cathcart is doubtful.
Betting Stats
Chelsea have covered 44.4% of their total goal overs at home in the league this season (8-10).
Chelsea have covered 27.8% of their total 1st half goal overs at home in the league this season which is 3rd worst in the BPL (5-1-12).
Chelsea average 1.11 bookings per game at home in the BPL this season (20 bookings in 18 games).
Eden Hazard is Chelsea’s top scorer at home with 11 league goals at Stamford Bridge this season.
Chelsea have covered 50% of their Handicaps at home in the BPL this season (9-1-8).
Chelsea have covered 44.4% of their 1st half Handicaps at home in the BPL this season (8-1-9).
Watford have covered 50% of their total goal overs away from home in the BPL this season (9-1-8).
Watford have covered 27.8% of their total 1st half goal overs away from home in the BPL this season, however 44.4% of them were a Void (5-8-5).
Watford average 2.22 bookings per game away from home in the BPL this season (40 bookings in 18 games).
Gerard Deulofeu is Watford’s top scorer away from home with 7 away league goals this season. Troy Deeney has 6.
Watford have covered 72.2% of their Handicaps away from home in the league this season (13-1-4) which is 2nd best in the league.
Watford have covered 44.4% of their 1st half Handicaps away from home in the league this season (8-4-6).
KICK OFF – 5th May 2019 – 2pm UK Time
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