EFL pundit delivers score prediction for Bristol City clash vs Watford

Bristol City host Watford at Ashton Gate in their final fixture before the break for the World Cup. The two teams are at opposite ends of the Championship but will want to finish this period on a high before players jet off to Qatar.

The Robins are in the lowly position of 20th after clubs overtook them following their involvement in the Carabao Cup, losing to lower league Lincoln City. Watford were one of the teams that played a league match instead on Tuesday and won 2-0 against Reading to put themselves in the play-off spots.

The Hornets are now managed by former Croatia and West Ham boss Slaven Bilic. Bilic replaced Rob Edwards as manager in the hope that he would guide the Hertfordshire club back to the Premier League at the first attempt.

In terms of the form table, City are struggling for consistency at the moment and haven’t recorded back-to-back wins since September. Watford have won four matches in their last five matches.

This is the match that Bristol City will not set up to frustrate Watford in, manager Nigel Pearson admitted. The 59-year-old is managing against the club he previously managed before taking charge of City.

Watford boast an array of stars, including Brazilian striker Joao Pedro who has been identified as the player who could cause City most of their problems. Pearson was at the club when Pedro, an 18-year-old at the time, joined. The 21-year-old was subject of interest from Newcastle United but remained at Vicarage Road and is a player the defence must be wary of.

City’s injury situation has not improved with centre-backs Kal Naismith and Tomas Kalas expected to be out. Naismith has been a massive miss for the Robins with Pearson having to rejig his back three on several occasions over the last month.

Ahead of the match, Sky Sports presenter and pundit David Prutton has given his prediction as to how the match will end up. Prutton featured for Leeds United, Nottingham Forest and Southampton during his playing career and watches over all 24 Championship teams.

Prutton has predicted that Watford will come away from Ashton Gate victorious, tipping them to win 2-1. City have one of the worst defensive records with only Hull City, Wigan and Blackpool conceding more. They have also struggled at home as of late, picking up just one win in their last five matches.