Watford

Watford boss Ed Still spoke to BBC Three Counties Radio after Saturday's goalless draw with Leicester City.

"I was trying to put my finger on it, what the emotions are, and frustrating is probably the word," he said.

"It's a funny feeling, because on one hand to have seen how the players got out there on the pitch, credit to them. The commitment and mental strength to get over the pain for a lot of them, credit to them.

"We will take the point, because on another day you could lose that game.

"I was convinced we could have that moment in the second half where we could force a winner, and then you see that it didn't quite fall for us.

"It was frustrating because you feel a little bit powerless in moments where you know the squad is what it is and the boys are pushing through pain."

Image source, Shutterstock

Watford manager Ed Still wants his team's counter attacks to strike fear into opponents as they continue to push for a Championship play-off spot.

The former Anderlecht coach, who took over the Hornets on 9 February, believes his squad have the tools to do damage to opponents with fast transitions.

Still called on his players to show it with the first back-to-back wins of his tenure when they host relegation-threatened Leicester City on Saturday.

"We want it that teams fear our counter attacks and transitions," Still told BBC Three Counties Radio. "We were excellent on Tuesday [against Wrexham].

"I had seen prior to coming in. The analysis I had made clear the counter-attacking qualities of the squad [but] I had got the feeling that they weren't quite lethal enough.

"We have put a big emphasis on converting those chances since and we're improving on it.

"We want to be a threat on the ball if teams do sit off us a little bit, that we have that threat dominating possession as well."

Watford beat Wrexham 3-1 on Tuesday and they go into Saturday's match in ninth spot, five points off sixth place with eight games to go.

"We want a repeat of that performance," said Still. "We are going to go full on and all in to try to do a repeat of the Wrexham game.

"The whole squad and the staff realise what stage of the season we are at but also that we haven't yet managed to put together a couple of wins on the bounce.

"We are very much intent on doing so [against Leicester]."

Jobi McAnuff believes just five teams are fighting it out for two Championship play-off spots.

In the latest edition of the BBC's 72+ EFL podcast, Aaron Paul and McAnuff were joined by AFC Wimbledon boss Johnnie Jackson discuss the top stories from the EFL.

Watford's 3-1 win over Wrexham on Tuesday opened the door for Southampton to take over the Welsh side's top-six spot - and they did so, winning 1-0 against Norwich on Wednesday.

Watford are ninth, five points behind the Saints with eight games to go, while Birmingham are a further two points behind in 10th.

McAnuff said: "Watford are still in the mix. I feel like seven points feels a bit too big at this stage of the season. Birmingham feels a little far away.

"Southampton are the ones I believed would come through and get a play-off place.

"A couple of weeks ago I'd have said there's only one place up for grabs (sixth). That's changed now, (fifth-placed) Hull have been really inconsistent so they have been brought into it a lot more.

"You've got Easter coming up, six points can go in a week. You have a quick turnaround. If you can put a run of games together you can really jump up four or five places in the space of a few days. Anyone down to Watford (can make it), Birmingham feels a little too far away at this stage."

Leicester City will seek an escape from the bottom three when they visit promotion-chasing Watford on Saturday (15:00 GMT).

The Foxes took the lead against Queens Park Rangers on the weekend but ultimately suffered a 3-1 defeat to leave them two points adrift of safety.

But the Hornets will be a tough customer, hunting down a place in the play-offs against stiff competition and hot off a big win against fellow promotion-hopefuls Wrexham.

• Watford will be looking to do the league double over Leicester for the first time since 2012-13, after winning 2-1 in this season's reverse fixture on Boxing Day.

• Leicester have won their last two away league games against Watford (5-1 in 2022 and 2-1 in 2024), and have never previously won three in succession away to the Hornets.

• Watford have only won one of their last seven Saturday matches in the Championship (D2 L4), although that was in their most recent one at Vicarage Road (2-0 v Derby last month).

• Leicester are winless in their last nine away league games (D5 L4); they last went 10 in a row without a win in the Championship between December 2004 and October 2005 (18).

• Midfielder Jordan James is now Leicester's top scorer in the Championship this season (10), while only Abdul Fatawu (16) has more goal involvements for the Foxes than the Welshman (14).

Watford midfielder Edoardo Bove has dedicated his first goal since suffering a cardiac arrest to his girlfriend, after scoring in stoppage time to seal a 3-1 win against Wrexham on Tuesday.

"This goal was for [my girlfriend] because only we know what we have been through and without her I couldn't do anything and I have to thank her for being by my side each day of my rehab," Bove told BBC 3CR.

"It was an easy one - open goal - but the celebration was unbelievable. I went directly to the fans. I'm so so happy for me and for the team who supported me the past two months."

The 23-year-old collapsed playing for Fiorentina in Serie A in December 2024 but has been fit to play after having a defibrillator installed following a cardiac arrest.

He joined Watford in January and has now made six appearances for the Hornets.

"My feeling is very good - I think I'm improving and everyone knows in the club what I can do and how much I can play," Bove said.

"I can play a full match but it's all about what the coach decides and the team is doing well and I want to help. Let's see how I can help the team in the future."

The win over fellow promotion hopefuls Wrexham has renewed Watford's hopes of securing a Championship play-off place.

"It's what we are looking for," added Bove. "We know it's difficult but we watch ourselves only, we try to win every game - it's eight games left so we still have time."

Watford are ninth in the league and five points from the play-off spots. They will host struggling Leicester City on Saturday (15:00 GMT) aiming to build a winning run.

"We have the possibility to recover a lot of points. With the support of the fans it gives us more power and energy and we control the games better at home," said Bove.

Listen to the full interview with Edoardo Bove and more Watford on BBC Sounds.

Image source, Getty Images

There have been plenty of contentious decisions in the 2025-26 Championship season so far.

Offside goals given, perfectly good goals ruled out, red card offences missed, penalties not given, dubious spot-kicks awarded. You name it.

With the video assistant referee (VAR) only used for the play-off final, the outcome of every second-tier game in the regular season can hinge on how on-field officials see incidents in real time.

• Would you want VAR introduced for every league game in the Championship?

• If so, why?

• And if not, let us know your reasons.

You can share your thoughts on VAR here or comment below, and we will publish a follow-up article soon with a selection of your responses.

Image source, Shutterstock

Watford will have striker Mamadou Doumbia back for Tuesday's vital game against play-off hopefuls Wrexham at Vicarage Road.

Doumbia has completed a three-match ban imposed after a clash with Ipswich's Dara O'Shea was caught on video, although it was not seen on the night by officials.

The Hornets are in 10th place, four places and eight points adrift of their Welsh opponents, and are in urgent need of victory to close that gap.

Doumbia says he found having to watch from the sidelines hard.

"I am young, and sometimes you make a mistake. But, if you make a mistake, you have to put your head up and try to look forward," he told the club's website.

The 20-year-old scored against Wrexham in a 2-2 draw in December but added: "That's the past – now this game is the most important. We have to play with confidence and show character. We have just nine more games, and we have to try to win as many as we can."

Watford boss Ed Still has called on his team to "push harder" following Saturday's 3-1 loss at Stoke City.

He told BBC Three Counties Radio: "I'm fairly stable. Things are never as good as they seem when you're winning and on a good run, and things are never as bad as they seem on the back of a defeat, only the second defeat in six games.

"We're going to turn up at The Vic on Tuesday and just go for it."

Image source, Opta

There's a big game in the Championship play-off race as Watford host Wrexham on Tuesday night (19:45 GMT).

The Hornets are 10th and now eight points adrift of the sixth-placed Red Dragons after a run of one win in four, going down 3-1 at Stoke on Saturday.

Phil Parkinson's men bounced back from a home defeat to Hull City with a 2-0 win over Swansea on Friday night and know a win would take them above the Tigers on goal difference and into fifth for the first-time this season.

It would also open a six-point cushion to the play-off chasing pack with just eight games to come after their trip to Vicarage Road.

• Three of the past five Football League meetings between Watford (W1) and Wrexham (W1) have been drawn, including the reverse fixture in December (2-2), with Ollie Rathbone netting a 92nd minute equaliser for the Welsh side.

• Wrexham have won on only one of their previous 10 Football League trips to Watford (D2 L7); a 2-1 victory in March 1975.

• Watford have lost three of their past five league games at Vicarage Road (W1 D1), as many defeats as in their previous 20 matches (W11 D6).

• After failing to win their final eight away league matches in 2025 (D5 L3), Wrexham have won five of their six away league games so far in 2026 (D1).

• Wrexham's Josh Windass has scored in his past two league games against Watford, netting at Vicarage Road for Sheffield Wednesday in May last season and in December in the reverse fixture.

Watford head coach Ed Still has said he is "gutted" that his side failed to take their chances in a 3-1 loss at Stoke City on Saturday.

Tom Ince missed two good chances in the first half before Potters winger Million Manhoef gave the hosts the lead.

Hornets defender Stephen Mfuni also blundered a free header in the latter period before Manhoef completed his brace, with the lead momentarily halved by the Hornets' Nestory Irankunda in the final 10 minutes.

Sam Gallagher however stumped a Watford comeback when his strike sailed into the far corner on the 85th minute to seal the Hornets' 11th loss of the season.

"Gutted because there's a little bit of the same feeling as there was after the Sheffield Wednesday game earlier this week, where we've started the game and had at least three huge opportunities there and come into the zones where we wanted to be, pulled the ball back to the zones we wanted to bring it back to," explained Still to BBC Three Counties Radio.

"At this level, at any level, you need to be taking those chances to be one or two ahead, and then the dynamic of the game changes completely.

"You put the opposition on the back foot, you're able to set up and manage the game completely differently.

"Then also we've come out early in the second half and had another couple of really, really good chances - not just situations, but actually real chances, which we haven't taken."

Stoke have only one win in their past 11 matches and are nine points adrift the play-off places as they welcome Watford on Saturday (15:00 GMT)

Despite Milan Smit's last-gasp equalising penalty at home to Ipswich last time out, Mark Robins' side are winless in their past three.

Watford are ninth, five points outside the top six and their hopes of catching up were dealt a blow by their 1-1 draw at bottom club Sheffield Wednesday in their last outing.

• Stoke City have failed to score in 12 of their last 20 league games against Watford, including each of the last three in a row (D1 L2).

• Watford are looking to get their first away league win at Stoke since a 4-0 win in 2022-23 – the Potters haven't scored in either of their last two visits since (D1 L1).

• Stoke have won just one of their last 13 league games on a Saturday (D4 L8), beating Swansea 2-1 in December. They are averaging just 0.54 points per game across those 13 games.

• Watford have won six of their last eight league games against City teams (D1 L1), with five of those six wins coming via a one-goal margin.

• Stoke manager Mark Robins has only lost one of his last eight league matches against Watford (W2 D5), though it was earlier this season in a 1-0 defeat. He has never lost two league games against the Hornets in a single season.

Image source, Getty Images

Watford right-backs Jeremy Petris and Jeremy Ngakia are both set to miss "a few weeks" as the club look to try and seal a Championship play-off spot.

Petris was substituted off during the 1-1 draw to Sheffield Wednesday on Tuesday after dislocating his shoulder, while Ngakia missed out on the game with a hamstring problem.

The draw at Hillsborough has left the Hornets five points behind Wrexham in sixth place and they are now light in the right-back position - though boss Ed Still is "confident" that centre-back James Abankwah can provide sufficient cover.

"He's our strongest option to take over from Ngakia and Petris," Still told BBC Radio 3CR.

"He's done it before. He's got great physicality and great pace. We are lucky to have that extra option."

The side next face Mark Robins' Stoke City on Saturday (15:00 GMT).

The Potters have fallen away from the promotion race of late, however they did take a late 3-3 draw against Ipswich Town in their last outing and Watford's young manager is not underestimating the challenge.

Still added: "There are some managers in the Championship that stand out and he's [Robins] definitely one of them."

Listen to the full interview on BBC Sounds

Listen to more Watford content on BBC Sounds

Christian Fuller
Watford fan writer

Image source, Getty Images

The dream of Watford snatching a play-off place is now well and truly over.

A 1-1 draw against an already relegated Sheffield Wednesday is simply not good enough – and has deflated any hope Watford supporters had of a late charge towards promotion.

We find ourselves five points outside the top six, so while it is mathematically possible to reach the play-offs, there have been no signs of a resurgence and it feels like we are now too far adrift of the leading pack.

In a match that could have seen the Hornets 3-0 up at half-time, in classic football - and Watford - fashion, we instead concede.

And as their goal went it, the match felt destined to be a frustrating affair – personified by their captain, Liam Palmer, beginning time-wasting in the 65th minute.

Even more frustratingly, pretty much every other result this week has gone Watford's way – but we could not hold up our end of the deal.

Put simply, if Sheffield Wednesday take two points off you this season, you do not deserve to be in the hunt for promotion.

While the late, scrappy goal from Vivaldo Semedo saved our blushes to a certain extent, the result still signifies the end of the season for Watford.

Supporters were promised fast-paced, attacking football through wide players upon Ed Still's arrival. But there has been little spark in these areas with the absence of Kwadwo Baah and Othmane Maamma, meaning the new manager has been unable to implement his vision.

What the future holds for the man currently in charge at Vicarage Road, we will have to wait and see.

With our final two fixtures of the season against the two league leaders, Coventry City and Middlesbrough, we needed to be in a strong position going into those matches to stand any chance of snatching a place in the top six.

But now that hope has all but faded away.

Watford head coach Ed Still said he was "really disappointed" by his side despite them rescuing a point late on at Sheffield Wednesday.

Jerry Yates's header in the 54th minute sparked hopes of what would have been only the Owls' second win of the season after the Hornets had dominated much of the first half.

Watford substitute Vivaldo Semedo, however, reacted quickest after Owls keeper Pierce Charles' spilled Pierre Ekwah's 90th-minute shot to spare the visitors' blushes.

"Really disappointed, strange game," Still told BBC Three Counties Radio after the match.

"We've created some fantastic opportunities there in the first half, which we've been doing well in the previous games to take.

"We've gotten ahead in games early previously and again, we started really well. We've come up there with what felt like four or five really big chances in the first half and we didn't take them.

"Then the injury to [Jeremy] Petris kind of put a halt to the positive flow that we had going. And again, it's disappointing, it's really unlucky to get that injury, but you've got to reshuffle.

"We didn't have [Jeremy] Ngakia with us and so we've got to reshuffle a little bit, find a different balance. Then we've come out in the second half and we haven't been stable enough in that second-half performance just to keep pushing and we've kind of opened up maybe a little bit too much and we've given away a few huge chances to them."

Image source, Geoff Doyle/BBC Three Counties Radio

Watford boss Ed Still hopes an 11-day break since their previous game will result in a rejuvenated performance at Sheffield Wednesday on Tuesday evening.

The Hornets have a six-point gap to close if they are to reach the Championship play-offs this season, having taken seven points from four games since Still took charge.

"It's been like a mini pre-season for us," Still told the club website.

"It's been about building on what was put in place in those first four weeks and not reinventing anything, and not changing or revolutionising anything dramatically.

"We want to stay stable and really solid defensively, and hopefully in the coming weeks we'll see a little bit more fluidity when we do have the ball."

Although Wednesday have already been relegated, Still said they had been competitive in all of their recent matches.

"It wasn't so long ago they came to The Vic and picked up a point - the players are very much aware of what a difficult and tricky game it will be," he added.

Defender Mattie Pollock will be assessed because of an ankle problem before the matchday squad is confirmed.

Image source, Opta

Sheffield Wednesday stand on the brink of more unwanted EFL history as they prepare to welcome Watford to Hillsborough on Tuesday night (19:45 GMT).

The Owls are already down and, after Saturday's 2-1 defeat at Derby, have lost 13 straight Championship games and their past six at home in all competitions.

One of the 11 points they have won from 36 games this season did come at Vicarage Road in December, however.

The Hornets lie ninth, six points behind the play-off places, with a game in hand on some of the sides they are chasing, following a 2-1 win at Bristol City in their last action on 27 February.

• Sheffield Wednesday are winless in their past 10 league games against Watford (D5 L5) since a 1-0 win at Vicarage Road in December 2013.

• Watford are unbeaten in their past six away league games against Sheffield Wednesday (W4 D2), winning this exact fixture 6-2 last season.

• Sheffield Wednesday are winless in their past 19 home league games (D5 L14), and failure to win here would equal the longest run in English league history (Sunderland, 20 between January-December 2017).

• Watford have lost just two of their past 11 away league games (W4 D5), having lost nine of their 11 on the road before this (D2).

• Sheffield Wednesday are winless in all 18 of their home league games this season, and could become the first team in English league history to fail to win 19 in a row on home soil in a single campaign.

Image source, Shutterstock

Earlier we asked what you make of the news that, from next season, the Championship play-offs will be expanded to include the teams finishing seventh and eighth?

It was announced on Thursday morning that EFL clubs voted in favour of expanding the play-offs from four to six teams.

Here's a selection of your comments...

Josh, Derby: I don't believe this is necessary. I do think that the play-off format should be aligned throughout the top five leagues, but expanding isn't needed. Better distribution of the monies involved and establishing a clear matchday structure to balance various men's and women's leagues would be a better use of everyone's time. This strikes me undue American influence.

Callum, Dartford: I think it's a good thing so teams can push for promotion that thought they wouldn't get near the play-offs.

Cato, Sheffield: If we adopted it to this season, it means that eighth-placed Derby (on 51 points) have about as much a chance of going up as third-placed Millwall (on 63 points). Plus, to accommodate the extra games, would they extend the season into June? I don't like the idea of it at all, and I hope it's short-lived.

Steve, London: Another example of football being ruined, week by week. Don't you dare think about implementing VAR too.

Mark, Stafford: As a Stoke fan, I think it's good news. The season has come to a grinding halt due to being decimated by injuries. Add to that, the quality of what is coming down from the Premier League, it would mean upsets can happen and still allow teams in that mid-table race to dream of greater heights!

Richard, Stansted: Absolutely ridiculous. What is the point of a league format if you are going to make it a bigger lottery to include even more teams at the end of the season? It also brings teams that are even less ready to actually be in the Premier League into scope. But mostly it's the undermining of the league format which makes no sense. I'm a Derby fan - and we look like we would have a chance of benefiting from this if it were in place this season.

Andy, Nuneaton: Anything that expands the opportunities for those outside of the parachute teams is a good thing. We need to get away from this elite view of the Premier League. If it was up to them, they'd stop automatic promotion and relegation and have a system like Rugby Union, where it's based on meeting certain criteria. The eighth-placed club in the Championship getting to the PL? Bring it on!

Ron, Hayling: Money, Money, Money. Players complain about the amount of games they play with the league games and cup competitions so the intention is to play even more at the end of the season. Owners will make some money but that's all that matters!

Barry, Dartford: Yes it's a fantastic for everyone, all the small teams as well as the big boys, to have something to play for. It will give the end of the season something to look forward to.

Benjamin, Poole: I'm a Charlton fan, so it's unlikely we'll come 8th in the Championship any time soon, however, this is ridiculous. More pandering to Americans to make it more likely they'll make money, which is the only thing they care about. Sporting integrity out of the window again. Shame as I felt the Championship was the last bastion of quality and integrity combined. Game has gone.

Broughton, Derby: Absolute ridiculous, put it back to the old days of three straight up, no play-offs. If you don't make top-three you don't deserve to go up.

Julian, London: The worst decision from a footballing point of view ever! The National League teams have been trying to change their system to be like the current EFL system so it seems a very strange decision for the EFL to take. You can finish 8th after 46 games and still get promoted - sporting integrity has been totally lost with this decision. Money over integrity every time!