After their Premier League return lasted just one season, Watford will make their Championship comeback on Monday evening when they welcome Sheffield United to Vicarage Road in the final second tier fixture of the gameweek.

The Hornets have ushered in a new era this summer, with Rob Edwards arriving as head coach from Forest Green Rovers and breaking the mould of past appointments the club have made.

Despite a lack of experience in management, Edwards has plenty of Premier League-calibre players in his current side, with the Blades set to come up against the likes of Ismaila Sarr and Emmanuel Dennis.

 

 

 

 

It is a tough start for Paul Heckingbottom's side, who will be looking to banish the memories of his side's Championship play-off semi-final defeat to Nottingham Forest just two months ago.

New faces have been added to United's side, with Anel Ahmedhodzic, Tommy Doyle and Reda Khadra among the new recruits, and EFL pundit David Prutton believes that fans could be in for a goal-fest in Hertfordshire - but ultimately the points will be split in a 2-2 draw.

"The weekend rounds off with a clash between another two teams who are sure to be challenging at the top of the division," Prutton said on his Sky Sports predictions podcast.

"It is a Championship managerial bow in front of a bumper Vicarage Road crowd for Rob Edwards, who is Watford's fourth manager since the start of last term.

"Sheffield United lost out in the play-offs last term after excellent work from Paul Heckingbottom, who took over after a mediocre start for the Blades under Slavisa Jokanovic.

"They will want to get off to a good start under the lights and I think this could be another cracker."

The Verdict

Paul Heckingbottom probably would have wanted a slightly easier start on paper than a trip to Vicarage Road.

On paper, Watford have a very strong squad to choose from, although that could change before the end of the transfer window if their top players are cherry-picked by bigger clubs.

They will have to get used to Edwards' way of playing though, and that could be a plus point for the Blades, who are already well-equipped to Heckingbottom's methods.

Like Prutton, I can see a draw being the most likely outcome here.