Everton vs Watford preview

Team news, stats and prediction ahead of Everton vs Watford in the Premier League.

Team news

Everton are waiting on the fitness of Andre Gomes ahead of Saturday's Premier League clash with Watford. The midfielder limped out of the Toffees' opening game of the season against Crystal Palace just before half-time and is a doubt while midfielder Fabian Delph (thigh) remains sidelined.

Full-back Leighton Baines is back training with the squad but midfielder Morgan Schneiderlin misses out through suspension following his sending-off against Palace.

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Danny Welbeck could be involved for Watford after stepping up his training this week. The England international has not featured since November when he broke his leg playing for Arsenal but is back to fitness, though record signing Ismaila Sarr will not feature.

Gerard Deulofeu should be fine after coming off against Brighton last week with an illness while Adam Masina, Quina and Nathaniel Chalobah are back in the squad.

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How to watch

Follow the action with our dedicated live blog. Highlights of the game will be published at 5.15pm on the Sky Sports website and app plus the Sky Sports Football YouTube channel.

Opta stats

• Everton won six of their first nine Premier League games against Watford (W6 D2 L1) but are winless in their last three against the Hornets (W0 D1 L2).
• Watford are winless in all 13 away matches against Everton in all competitions (W0 D2 L11), leading in three of their last four matches at Goodison Park but failing to win any.
• Everton kept five consecutive home Premier League clean sheets at the end of the 2018-19 season - they've only had a longer such run in the competition once previously, keeping seven in a row between March and September 2013.

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• Watford have lost their last four Premier League games - they haven't lost five in a row since losing their final six games of the 2016-17 season under Walter Mazzarri.
• 14 of the last 15 goals scored in Premier League games between Everton and Watford have been scored in the second half; at Goodison Park, 16 of the 23 goals scored in this fixture in the Premier League have been netted in the second half (70%).
• Against Crystal Palace, Everton's Morgan Schneiderlin became the 12th different player to be sent off under Marco Silva in the Premier League - five more than have been sent off under any other manager since Silva's first game in the competition on January 14th, 2017.
• Everton's Gylfi Sigurdsson has played eight Premier League games against Watford without registering a single goal or assist. The Hornets are the side he's faced the most in the competition without a goal involvement.

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Charlie's prediction

Watford have kept Abdoulaye Doucoure because he is a good player, and then he goes and scores an own goal last week! With Everton, it is like the boiler that has been renewed. Is it going to work and are people going to press the right buttons? If Marco Silva didn't get the results coming out of the back of last season he could have gone.

They went big in the market and invested up front. Have they got strikers yet? Is there anything in there that could spark them into life? They have given the manager every resource he could get. Where are they going to play Alex Iwobi? I see a team that is going to be creative but weak at the back.

Watford's disaster last week could be a wake-up call and they don't need to attack so could sit in. I am looking forward to seeing how Everton get back to business but I am sitting on the fence.

CHARLIE PREDICTS: 1-1 6/1 with Sky Bet

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Fantasy Football tip

Richarlison (£10.2m) scored in this fixture last season, as him and Marco Silva face their former club once more. Moise Kean (£10.2m) came off the bench against Crystal Palace and could come in to replace Dominic Calvert-Lewin. Play here.

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