City v Watford: play-off push meets top half fight | OneFootball

Bristol City host Watford in the Championship at Ashton Gate on Friday, 27 February 2026, with eighth playing 12th and both eyeing ground in the promotion play-off race.

Bristol City hold the recent head-to-head edge after a 5-1 FA Cup win over Watford in January, adding spice to a meeting of teams split by two points.

City's form is mixed: wins at Hull and Blackburn bookend a draw with Wrexham and defeats at Swansea and at home to Derby. The Hornets have one win in their last five, beating Derby 2-0 before a 2-0 loss to Ipswich, with draws at Preston and Hull and defeat at Southampton in that run.

The Robins are without defenders Ross McCrorie, Robert Dickie and Luke McNally, pointing to a defensive reshuffle. The Hornets miss midfielder Hector Matthew Kyprianou and forwards Kwadwo Baah, Rocco Vata and Othmane Maamma, so attacking options may be thinner.

City have scored 47 and kept 11 clean sheets this season, while the Hornets have 43 goals, six clean sheets and 80.56% passing accuracy. Scott Twine and Emil Riis Jakobsen both have nine league goals for the hosts, and Luca Kjerrumgaard's eight goals plus Imran Louzan's seven assists highlight the visitors' threat. With most goals coming from inside the box for both, territory in the area could be decisive.

A win would take City to 53 points and could move them closer to the promotion play-off places. Victory for the Hornets would lift them to 51 points and keep them in touch with the pack chasing the top half.