Thursday , 2 July 2026

Middlesbrough FC vs Watford FC, Championship 2025-26 REGULAR SEASON

Championship · 2025-26
Middlesbrough FC
5 – 1
Full Time
Watford FC
Sat 25 Apr 2026 · 11:30 UTC Riverside Stadium HT 45' · FT 45'
Y 74' James Abankwah
Y 85' Imran Louza
Aidan Morris 85' Y

Overview

Match Preview

Middlesbrough FC vs Watford FC — Championship at Riverside Stadium.

Match Details

  • Referee Adam Herczeg

Standings

# Team P Pts
1 Coventry City FC 46 95
2 Ipswich Town FC 46 84
3 Millwall FC 46 83
4 Southampton FC 46 80
5 Middlesbrough FC 46 80
6 Hull City AFC 46 73
7 Wrexham AFC 46 71
8 Derby County FC 46 69
9 Norwich City FC 46 65
10 Birmingham City FC 46 64
11 Swansea City AFC 46 64
12 Bristol City FC 46 62
13 Sheffield United FC 46 60
14 Preston North End FC 46 60
15 Queens Park Rangers FC 46 58
16 Watford FC 46 57
17 Stoke City FC 46 55
18 Portsmouth FC 46 55
19 Charlton Athletic FC 46 53
20 Blackburn Rovers FC 46 52
21 West Bromwich Albion FC 46 51
22 Oxford United FC 46 47
23 Leicester City FC 46 46
24 Sheffield Wednesday FC 46 0

Head-to-Head

4
1
5
Middlesbrough FC 10 games · Avg 3.0 goals Watford FC
Last 5 meetings
2026-04-25 Middlesbrough FC 5–1 Watford FC 2025-11-01 Watford FC 3–0 Middlesbrough FC 2025-02-15 Middlesbrough FC 0–1 Watford FC 2024-10-05 Watford FC 2–1 Middlesbrough FC 2024-05-04 Middlesbrough FC 3–1 Watford FC

Recent Form

Middlesbrough FC
DateOpponentH/A ScoreResult
25 Apr Watford FC H 5–1 W
22 Apr Sheffield Wednesday FC H 1–0 W
19 Apr Ipswich Town FC A 2–2 D
11 Apr Portsmouth FC H 0–1 L
06 Apr Swansea City AFC A 2–2 D
03 Apr Millwall FC H 1–2 L
Watford FC
DateOpponentH/A ScoreResult
25 Apr Middlesbrough FC A 1–5 L
21 Apr West Bromwich Albion FC A 0–3 L
18 Apr Sheffield United FC H 0–2 L
11 Apr Oxford United FC A 0–2 L
06 Apr Charlton Athletic FC H 1–1 D
03 Apr Queens Park Rangers FC A 1–2 L

Season Stats

Middlesbrough FC Watford FC
#5 Position #16
80 Points 57
46 Played 46
22 / 14 / 10 W / D / L 14 / 15 / 17
72 Scored 53
47 Conceded 65
+25 GD -12
1.74 PPG 1.24
48% Win % 30%

Key Stats

60% Both Teams to Score
H2H (10 games)
60% Over 2.5 Goals
H2H history

Middlesbrough FC are 5th (80 pts). Watford FC are 16th (57 pts).

Events

Match Events

  • 0' Welcome to Riverside Stadium that hosts another battle between Middlesbrough FC and Watford FC.
  • 5' Watford FC started playing very sharply right from the kick off. However, it slowed down the tempo rapidly by 5.
  • 6' Middlesbrough FC is taking the lead after the goal scored by Morgan Whittaker on 6.
  • 11' It looks surprising Middlesbrough FC does not make any changes. David Strelec has some obvious troubles when approaching to the goal.
  • 16' Luke Ayling needs to be pretty careful with his discipline considering 0 Red cards this season.
  • 21' Middlesbrough FC seems to be on a short break. The game is mainly concentrated in the center. It’s high time they got back to action. Otherwise, it looks like a goalless game.
  • 26' Alex Bangura has certainly something to prove this evening. He made 0 appearances with only 1 goals this season.
  • 31' While there is no rush on the pitch, let’s have a look at some stats. Nestor Irankunda made 233 appearances and scored 18 goals. He is very likely to score a goal today.
  • 36' Spectators are craving for more action. Both teams play very cautiously. They need to put some more energy.
  • 41' Middlesbrough FC is showing some good football. However, Middlesbrough FC are ready to play back every minute. It might result in some problems for the home side. The game will hardly remain goalless.
  • 46' Goal! David Strelec scores his 14 goal in 63 matches.
  • 46' Middlesbrough FC manager makes another effort to make the tables turned. Matt Targett is hanging Alex Bangura on the field on 46 minute.
  • 48' GOAL! James Abankwah scores on 48. Assisted by Kevin Keben Biakolo
  • 53' It looks like no one’s ball. Watford FC is used to counterattacking playing. None of the sides are ready to take the lead.
  • 58' Goal! Morgan Whittaker scores his 44 goal in 385 matches.
  • 62' Othmane Maamma has so much to prove this time. He replaces Jeremy Ngakia on 62 minute.
  • 63' The whistle greets Adilson Malanda as he departs to be replaced by Dael Fry.
  • 64' Another change for Middlesbrough FC made on 64 minute. Sontje Hansen leaves to be changed by Leo Castledine.
  • 69' Although teams showed high tempo form the start, they seem to slow down a bit. Both sides really need to catch a fire. Otherwise, we have another goalless match.
  • 74' Watford FC player sees a card in front of him.
  • 75' Goal! Tommy Conway scores his 40 goal in 387 matches.
  • 80' It’s high time Edward Still made some changes to put the his team’s game back to action.
  • 82' Another change for Watford FC made on 82 minute. Marc Bola leaves to be changed by Tom Ince.
  • 83' Middlesbrough FC manager makes another effort to make the tables turned. Sam Silvera is hanging Jeremy Sarmiento on the field on 83 minute.
  • 85' The referee shows Watford FC player a card on 85.
  • 90' Players seem to put ease on their energy level Spectators hardly appreciate such approach. Teams need to speed up the tempo.
  • Time to leave. No sensation happened. Another win for Middlesbrough FC players.

Lineups

Middlesbrough FC Lineups

Starting XI

Bench

Coach Kim Hellberg

Watford FC Lineups

Starting XI

Bench

Coach Edward Still

H2H

H2H Top Scorers

PlayerGoals
Ismaila Sarr 3
Riley McGree 2
Morgan Whittaker 2
Tommy Conway 2
Wesley Hoedt 2
Vakoun Issouf Bayo 2
David Strelec 1
Josh Coburn 1

Head to Head

2026-04-25 Middlesbrough FC 5–1 Watford FC 2025-11-01 Watford FC 3–0 Middlesbrough FC 2025-02-15 Middlesbrough FC 0–1 Watford FC 2024-10-05 Watford FC 2–1 Middlesbrough FC 2024-05-04 Middlesbrough FC 3–1 Watford FC

Middlesbrough FC Form

2026-04-25 Middlesbrough FC 5–1 Watford FC W 2026-04-22 Middlesbrough FC 1–0 Sheffield Wednesday FC W 2026-04-19 Ipswich Town FC 2–2 Middlesbrough FC D 2026-04-11 Middlesbrough FC 0–1 Portsmouth FC L 2026-04-06 Swansea City AFC 2–2 Middlesbrough FC D 2026-04-03 Middlesbrough FC 1–2 Millwall FC L

Watford FC Form

2026-04-25 Middlesbrough FC 5–1 Watford FC L 2026-04-21 West Bromwich Albion FC 3–0 Watford FC L 2026-04-18 Watford FC 0–2 Sheffield United FC L 2026-04-11 Oxford United FC 2–0 Watford FC L 2026-04-06 Watford FC 1–1 Charlton Athletic FC D 2026-04-03 Queens Park Rangers FC 2–1 Watford FC L

Predictions

Prediction accuracy
4 / 4
2.21 Middlesbrough FC xG
Expected Goals
Dixon-Coles · Bivariate Poisson · Neg. Binomial · Elo
0.97 Watford FC xG
I would bet for: Middlesbrough FC to win 61% + Over 2.5 goals 60%

Match Result

✓ Correct
Middlesbrough FC61% Draw22% Watford FC17%
Actual: Middlesbrough FC win

Both Teams to Score

✓ Correct
Yes55% 0% No45%
Avg goals/match: 3.18
Actual: Yes — both scored

Over / Under Goals

✓ O/U 2.5
Line Over Under
± 0.5 94%
6%
± 1.5 82%
18%
± 2.5 60%
40%
± 3.5 39%
61%
± 4.5 22%
78%

Double Chance

Middlesbrough FC or Draw
83%
Draw or Watford FC
39%
Middlesbrough FC or Watford FC
78%

Half-Time Result

✓ Correct
Middlesbrough FC46% Draw40% Watford FC14%
Actual: Middlesbrough FC win at HT

Correct Score

✗ 5–1 not predicted
5 – 1
Actual
2 – 0
10.1%
1 – 1
9.7%
2 – 1
9.5%
1 – 0
8.7%
3 – 0
7.2%
3 – 1
7%
0 – 0
5.7%
2 – 2
4.6%
1 – 2
4.2%
4 – 0
4%
4 – 1
3.9%
3 – 2
3.4%

Asian Handicap — Middlesbrough FC

Handicap Middlesbrough FC covers Push Watford FC covers
-2.5 22% — 78%
-2 22% 19% 58%
-1.5 42% — 58%
-1 42% 22% 36%
-0.5 64% — 36%
+0.5 85% — 15%
+1 85% 9% 5%
+1.5 95% — 5%
+2 95% 4% 1%
+2.5 99% — 1%

Clean Sheet

Middlesbrough FC keeps clean sheet
38% ✓
Watford FC keeps clean sheet
12% ✓

Predictions are statistical estimates based on season form, H2H history, and a Poisson model. Not financial advice.