Watford FC
Football England - EFL Championship Vicarage Road Thu 1 Jan 10:00
Birmingham City FC
  1. Prediction
  2. Odds
  3. Stats
  4. Team News
  5. Lineups
  6. Injuries
  7. Squads
  8. Table

Championship Betting Preview: Watford vs Birmingham

Watford take on Birmingham at Vicarage Road, with kick-off set for 10:00 on Thursday 1 January.

Hornets Look the Value Bet

Watford look like a value bet on the Asian Handicap 0.0. The beauty of this bet is that we’ll get a return at -141 if they get the better of Birmingham and money back if the game finishes in a draw.

On board with our Asian Handicap selection? Unlock today’s BetMGM promo code and find out how the bookie performs in our in-depth site review before jumping in.

Watford Are 5 From 7 on the Head-to-Head

Watford got a third straight win in their last game. It was a 1-0 road triumph at Carrow Road when meeting Norwich City. Javi Gracia's team had 45% possession and recorded two shots on target, with a late strike from Vivaldo Semedo proving the difference.

Birmingham City drew 1-1 against Southampton in their previous game. This was on home soil at St Andrew's. Blues recorded just 38% possession and had four shots on goal, with Phil Neumann finding the net.

Head-to-Head Statistics

Birmingham beat Watford in their last head-to-head clash. It was a 2-1 home win at St Andrew's. The past 7 H2H games have involved five Watford victories, a single draw and one Birmingham win.

Championship G W D L GF GA GD GD P
10 Birmingham logo Birmingham 32 12 10 10 43 39 4 43:39 46
12 Watford logo Watford 31 11 11 9 39 36 3 39:36 44
View Full Table
Watford – Last 10 League Games

5 wins, 1 loss and 4 draws, averaging 1.6 goals from 5.1 shots on goal and 14.3 attempts. Watford have had 54.0% possession and 5.1 corners per game. On average, their opponents have scored 1.2 goals from 2.7 shots on goal and 10.0 attempts, while being awarded 5.5 corners.

Luca Kjerrumgaard is the top goalscorer with 4, Othmane Maamma has 3, with Vivaldo Semedo and two other players on 2. Imran Louza is the leading assists maker on 4.

Birmingham City – Last 10 League Games

Birmingham have won 2, lost 4 and drawn 4, averaging 4.4 shots on goal, 15.3 attempts and 1.3 goals. The West Midlands outfit average 54.3% possession, 5.6 corners taken and 4.9 corners against them, while 1.6 goals have been conceded from 12.7 attempts and 4.5 shots on goal.

Marvin Ducksch and Demarai Gray top the team’s scoring charts on 3 goals, with Jay Stansfield on 2. Look no further than Demarai Gray for the top assist maker (3) in the last 10 games.

Confirmed Lineups

Watford confirmed lineup (4-4-2): Egil Selvik (GK), James Abankwah, Matthew Pollock, Max Alleyne, Marc Bola, Othmane Maamma, Hector Kyprianou, Imran Louza, Thomas Ince, Giorgi Chakvetadze, Luca Kjerrumgaard.

Birmingham confirmed lineup (4-2-3-1): James Beadle (GK), Alfons Sampsted, Phil Neumann, Jack Robinson, Alexander Cochrane, Tomoki Iwata, Seung-Ho Paik, Patrick Roberts, Willum Willumsson, Keshi Anderson, Kyogo Furuhashi.

Watford vs Birmingham Prediction & Betting Tips

Prepare for Watford vs Birmingham with our expert betting guide featuring a trusted match prediction, likely scoreline, top corners advice, key player props and a well-crafted bet builder.

Match Prediction

We’re happy to side with Watford 0.0 on the Asian Handicap for this Championship clash. At odds of -141, the home team offer plenty of appeal and we’re expecting a strong showing.

Team news plays a valuable role and our football experts are always monitoring the players who have an injury concern. We’ve also got a handle on the form guide, with plenty of Championship data provided which puts you in the picture in terms of stats.

Key Watford vs Birmingham league stats:

  • The 0.0 line has been covered by Watford in 3 consecutive games.
  • The 0.0 line has been covered by Watford in 6 of their last 10 games at home.
  • The 0.0 line hasn’t been covered by Birmingham in any of their last 5 games on the road.
  • The 0.0 line hasn’t been covered by Birmingham in 9 of their last 10 games on the road.
  • The 0.0 line hasn’t been covered by Birmingham in 3 consecutive games on the road.
  • The 0.0 line has been covered by Watford in 5 of their last 7 games against Birmingham.
Watford 0.0 Probability

According to the best betting sites, our pick has a 58.5% chance of landing a return. However, our experts think that the probability sits between 65-70% taking all factors into consideration. It is therefore regarded as a value wager.

Looking for Bigger Odds?

Want to back Watford to cover the line at bigger odds? Get more juice by taking the Bet Builder route where different legs can be combined to good effect.

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Our Match Prediction
Watford Asian Hcp 0.0 @ -141 Bet Now BetMGM logo
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Disclosure: This preview contains affiliate links; we may earn a commission at no extra cost to you. T&Cs apply. We only recommend licensed and regulated operators. See our Editorial Policy. Pick odds and lines reflect the price available at the time of publication (16:38, 30 December 2025). Live market odds are updated regularly and may differ. 18+ (or legal age) | Gamble Responsibly.
Published 16:38, 30 December 2025

Correct Score Prediction

Watford Watford logo 1 - 0 Birmingham logo Birmingham

Watford are available at +600 to win by a 1-0 scoreline. Correct score betting allows us to bet at bigger odds and it’s also a fun type of wager.

Player Prop Picks

Top Pick: Jay Stansfield Over 0.5 Shots On Target -130 BetMGM logo

Jay Stansfield (Birmingham) is available at -130 to have one or more shots on goal. He looks like an attractive pick and we’ll have a bet on this Shots on Target outcome as the betting odds stand out.

Latest Jay Stansfield Player Prop Odds

Othmane Maamma to Score +300 BetMGM logo

Othmane Maamma (Watford) has racked up two goals in his past five Championship games. There are odds of +300 on offer for this Anytime Goalscorer bet and we think this is an attractive wager for the player to be on the scoresheet.

Latest Othmane Maamma Player Prop Odds

Pick odds and lines correct at publication. Live market odds are updated regularly and may differ. T&Cs apply. 18+ (or legal age) | Gamble Responsibly.

Corners Prediction

Watford Over 4.5 Corners -143 BetMGM logo

Watford have had over 4.5 corners in five straight home games, with Birmingham conceding over 4.5 corners in their past three away games. We’re expecting history to be repeated and that would mean the Watford Team Corners line is covered at -143.

League Games
League Games
Last 10 Total For Against
Last 10 at Home Total For Against
Last 10 Away Total For Against
Watford Logo Watford
Total
10.60 5.10 5.50
Home
10.00 5.50 4.50
Away
10.00 4.10 5.90
Birmingham Logo Birmingham
Total
10.50 5.60 4.90
Home
11.40 7.00 4.40
Away
8.90 4.20 4.70
Latest Corner Odds

Pick odds and lines correct at publication. Live market odds are updated regularly and may differ. T&Cs apply. 18+ (or legal age) | Gamble Responsibly.

Bet Builder Tips

Asian Handicap Watford 0.0 +106
Both Team To Score No +102
Shots On Target Jay Stansfield Over 0.5 -130

Our bet builder selections include Watford with an Asian Handicap of 0.0, one or both teams not scoring as well as Jay Stansfield (Birmingham) to end up with one or more shots on target.

It’s now the case that you can wager a bet builder on a specific football match. You can predict different outcomes and see their odds combined before going ahead and placing this tailored bet.

Pick odds and lines correct at publication. Live market odds are updated regularly and may differ. T&Cs apply. 18+ (or legal age) | Gamble Responsibly.

Watford vs Birmingham Odds

The odds and lines below are updated regularly and may differ from the prices shown in our picks, which are captured at the time of publication.

Betting Sites Think the Game Could Go Either Way

The favourites have a 46% likelihood of success according to the bookies, with Watford chalked up at +118 to land a win in this Championship clash. For those wanting to oppose the market leader, you can get +225 about Birmingham City.

If you want to back the favourites to be ahead by the break, then Watford are +170 on the Half-Time Result market. Alternatively, Birmingham are +260 and the draw is priced at +120.

The Under 2.5 / Over 2.5 Goals betting market suggests that there’s not much between the two options. A different approach is a Both Teams to Score bet and Yes has been priced at -141.

The best football betting sites cover Championship games in serious depth and there are hundreds of markets. We recommend scanning through the various bets before picking out the best angle.

Luca Tange Kjerrumgaard Favourite to Find the Net First

Luca Tange Kjerrumgaard is the market leader at +450 to be First Goalscorer but if you think he will score the last goal, then a similar price can be found.

Player Goals
Luca Tange Kjerrumgaard (Watford)
First
+180
Anytime
+450
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Imran Louza (Watford)
First
+220
Anytime
+575
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Demarai Gray (Birmingham)
First
+260
Anytime
+650
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Mamadou Doumbia (Watford)
First
+260
Anytime
+700
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Player Shots On Target
Luca Tange Kjerrumgaard (Watford)
Over 0.5
-204
Under 0.5
+115
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Imran Louza (Watford)
Over 0.5
-154
Under 0.5
-112
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Mamadou Doumbia (Watford)
Over 0.5
-123
Under 0.5
-141
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Othmane Maamma (Watford)
Over 0.5
-120
Under 0.5
-143
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Live market odds and lines updated regularly. All odds subject to change. T&Cs apply. 18+ (or legal age) | Gamble Responsibly.
Best Betting Offers
Vicarage Road
Vicarage Road
Watford Aiming to Extend Unbeaten Home Streak

Watford have swerved defeat at Vicarage Road in the previous nine matches. Javi Gracia's team have collected six wins, three draws and one defeat in the past 10 home games, recording an average of 1.60 goals per match and conceding 0.90.

It’s now been three straight Birmingham defeats on the road. Blues have seven losses, two draws and one victory in the last 10 away matches, recording an average of 0.60 goals per game and conceding 1.70.

Watford enjoyed a 2-0 winning scoreline when last meeting Birmingham at Vicarage Road. For the past 3 H2H meetings at Vicarage Road, Watford have won every time.

Last 10 League Games W-D-L G GF GA O2.5 U2.5 B-Y B-No
Watford logo Watford Home Stats 6-3-1 2.50 1.60 0.90 5 5 7 3
Birmingham logo Birmingham Away Stats 1-2-7 2.30 0.60 1.70 5 5 5 5
  • W-D-L = Wins-Draws-Losses
  • G = Avg. Goals
  • GF = Avg. Goals For
  • GA = Avg. Goals Against
  • O2.5 = Matches Over 2.5 Goals
  • U2.5 = Matches Under 2.5 Goals
  • B-Y = Matches BTTS Yes
  • B-No = Matches BTTS No
Team Stats
Watford logo Watford League Stats
Birmingham logo Birmingham League Stats
Full-Time Result
  • 5 wins, 1 defeat and 4 draws in the previous 10 matches
  • 6 wins, 1 defeat and 3 draws in the previous 10 home matches
Full-Time Result
  • 2 wins, 4 defeats and 4 draws in the previous 10 matches
  • 1 win, 7 defeats and 2 draws in the previous 10 away matches
Goals
Goals
Corners
Corners
Possession
Possession
Top Scorers & Assists
Top Scorers & Assists

Watford vs Birmingham Lineups & Team News

The latest Watford vs Birmingham team news could impact your bets — review it first. We’ll deliver the predicted and confirmed Championship lineups as well as the most recent injury news.

Watford Confirmed Lineup 4-4-2

Birmingham Confirmed Lineup 4-2-3-1

Watford Confirmed Lineup 4-4-2

1 Egil Selvik
25 James Abankwah 6 Matthew Pollock 3 Max Alleyne 16 Marc Bola
42 Othmane Maamma 5 Hector Kyprianou 10 Imran Louza 7 Thomas Ince
8 Giorgi Chakvetadze 9 Luca Kjerrumgaard
25 James Beadle
23 Alfons Sampsted 5 Phil Neumann 6 Jack Robinson 20 Alexander Cochrane
24 Tomoki Iwata 8 Seung-Ho Paik
16 Patrick Roberts 18 Willum Willumsson 14 Keshi Anderson
9 Kyogo Furuhashi

Birmingham Confirmed Lineup 4-2-3-1

Watford Substitutes

  • 4Kevin Keben
  • 12Nathan Baxter
  • 17Moussa Sissoko
  • 18Vivaldo Semedo
  • 22James Morris
  • 23Nampalys Mendy
  • 29Jeremy Petris
  • 34Kwadwo Baah
  • 66Nestory Irankunda

Birmingham Substitutes

  • 12Marc Leonard
  • 17Lyndon Dykes
  • 21Ryan Allsop
  • 27Kanya Fujimoto
  • 30Lewis Koumas
  • 33Marvin Ducksch
  • 40Menzi Mazwi
  • 41Eiran Cashin
  • 42Daniel Isichei

Previous Watford Lineups

29 Dec Championship
Norwich 0-1 Watford
26 Dec Championship
Leicester 1-2 Watford
20 Dec Championship
Watford 1-0 Stoke
13 Dec Championship
Wrexham 2-2 Watford
09 Dec Championship
Watford 1-1 Sheffield Wed
06 Dec Championship
Watford 3-2 Norwich

Previous Birmingham Lineups

29 Dec Championship
Birmingham 1-1 Southampton
26 Dec Championship
Birmingham 1-1 Derby
20 Dec Championship
Sheffield Utd 3-0 Birmingham
13 Dec Championship
Birmingham 1-1 Charlton
09 Dec Championship
QPR 2-1 Birmingham
06 Dec Championship
Southampton 3-1 Birmingham

Injuries & Suspensions

Watford Injury Table
Type Name Info
Daniel Bachmann Muscle
Birmingham Injury Table
Type Name Info
Ethan Laird Hamstring
Team Squads

Watford Player Stats & Squad

Manager: Javi Gracia

Player # Pos GP MIN ST BE G A Y R
Imran Louza 10 M 21 1819 21 0 6 6 5 1
Jeremy Ngakia 2 D 21 1718 19 2 2 4 2 0
Marc Bola 16 D 20 1705 19 5 1 3 2 0
Matthew Pollock 6 D 19 1666 18 3 1 1 3 0
Egil Selvik 1 G 18 1575 18 0 0 0 1 0

Birmingham Player Stats & Squad

Manager: Chris Davies

Player # Pos GP MIN ST BE G A Y R
Christoph Klarer 4 D 23 2069 23 0 2 0 6 1
Tomoki Iwata 24 M 23 2027 23 0 1 1 6 0
Seung-Ho Paik 8 M 23 1917 22 1 4 0 5 0
Jay Stansfield 28 F 23 1884 23 0 8 3 5 0
Demarai Gray 7 F 23 1654 21 2 5 4 2 0
England FlagChampionship Table
2025/2026 Season
# Team G W D L +/- P
1 Middlesbrough 31 18 7 6 49:30 61
2 Coventry 31 17 8 6 63:35 59
3 Ipswich 30 15 9 6 51:29 54
4 Hull 31 16 6 9 50:43 54
5 Millwall 31 15 8 8 39:36 53
6 Wrexham 31 12 11 8 44:39 47
7 Preston 31 12 11 8 38:34 47
8 Bristol City 31 13 7 11 43:38 46
9 Southampton 32 12 10 10 48:44 46
10 Birmingham 32 12 10 10 43:39 46
11 Derby 31 12 9 10 45:39 45
12 Watford 31 11 11 9 39:36 44
13 QPR 31 12 8 11 42:43 44
14 Stoke 32 12 7 13 34:29 43
15 Swansea 31 12 6 13 38:37 42
16 Norwich 32 11 6 15 42:42 39
17 Sheffield Utd 31 12 3 16 44:45 39
18 Charlton 31 10 9 12 30:38 39
19 West Brom 32 9 7 16 32:47 34
20 Portsmouth 29 8 9 12 27:38 33
21 Leicester 32 10 8 14 44:51 32
22 Blackburn 31 8 8 15 27:40 32
23 Oxford 32 6 10 16 28:44 28
24 Sheffield Wed 31 1 8 22 18:62 -7
# Team G W D L +/- P
1 Coventry 15 11 3 1 31:11 36
2 Ipswich 16 10 5 1 30:12 35
3 Middlesbrough 15 10 3 2 25:11 33
4 Birmingham 16 8 7 1 30:15 31
5 Millwall 16 9 3 4 22:18 30
6 Watford 16 8 5 3 24:17 29
7 Swansea 16 8 4 4 24:18 28
8 Hull 16 8 3 5 23:23 27
9 QPR 15 8 2 5 28:21 26
10 Southampton 15 7 5 3 20:13 26
11 Preston 16 7 5 4 20:16 26
12 Charlton 15 7 4 4 16:14 25
13 Bristol City 16 7 3 6 25:20 24
14 Wrexham 16 6 6 4 26:24 24
15 Sheffield Utd 15 7 2 6 25:17 23
16 West Brom 15 6 5 4 18:19 23
17 Portsmouth 15 6 4 5 18:15 22
18 Leicester 16 6 4 6 23:23 22
19 Stoke 15 6 3 6 19:14 21
20 Derby 16 4 6 6 19:23 18
21 Norwich 15 5 1 9 16:20 16
22 Oxford 16 3 6 7 13:22 15
23 Blackburn 16 3 5 8 15:22 14
24 Sheffield Wed 16 0 4 12 7:33 4