Watford vs Middlesbrough
11 September 1945hrs
Football – England – Championship
Pick Watford AH-0.25
Bookmaker Marathonbet
Odds: 1.72 odds taken 0001 GMT, Thursday 10 September

Friday evening sees the return of the Championship and a new season in the second tier with the curtain-raiser between Watford and Middlesbrough as the betting tips continue at Vicarage Road.

Table of Contents

1 Watford Preview – Can Watford bounce straight back up?
2 Middlesbrough Preview – Can Middlesbrough stage revival under Warnock?
3 Watford vs Middlesbrough
4 The best betting odds for Watford vs Middlesbrough

Watford Preview – Can Watford bounce straight back up?

Watford will be looking to dust themselves off quickly when they take on Middlesbrough in the opening match of this new Championship season following last season’s relegation from the Premier League, but they’ve maintained the majority of last season’s squad and have added to their squad with the loan signing of Glenn Murray from Brighton to bolster their attacking options.

Back-to-back wins against Norwich City and Newcastle United had given Watford hope of avoiding the drop towards the end of last season but three defeats on the trot in the run-in sealed The Hornets’ fate.

In the recent pre-season friendlies, Watford lost 3-1 to Gillingham but bounced back to claim back-to-back wins over Scunthorpe United and Tottenham at Vicarage Road to head into this season-opener against Middlesbrough with at least a winning mindset.

Striker Deeney (10 goals last season) will be joined by Murray and both possess valuable experience along with being proven goalscorers and they should thrive in the Championship this term.

Our betting suggestion:

Both teams to score

2.00

Bet at Betfair

(odds taken 0001 GMT, Thursday 10 September

Middlesbrough Preview – Can Middlesbrough stage revival under Warnock?

There’s every chance that Middlesbrough can do exactly that under the canny, experienced guidance of manager, Neil Warnock, who helped steer Boro away from the relegation zone and up into a more respectable looking 17th place on the Championship ladder at the end of last season.

Former manager, Jonathan Woodgate, seemingly did his best to drag Boro down to the third tier but Warnock came to the rescue and steered the visitors to safety after four wins out of their final eight matches of the campaign.

Middlesbrough once again feature in the season-opener of the Championship (they drew 3-3 at Luton Town in last season’s curtain-raiser), but they may find Watford a different prospect at Vicarage Road on Friday night.