Manchester City to Face Watford in EFL Cup Third Round

Manchester City, an eight-time winner of the EFL Cup, is set to face Watford in the third round of the competition tonight, with aspirations to pursue success across all fronts this season. Under the management of Pep Guardiola, City has secured the EFL Cup four times, although their last victory was three years ago. In recent years, the competition saw victories from Liverpool and Manchester United, spurring City to reclaim the trophy with a strong performance this season.

The match occurs shortly after a challenging encounter with Arsenal, where City maintained their position at the top of the Premier League despite suffering the loss of a key midfielder due to a serious knee injury. Guardiola is expected to make several changes to his line-up against Watford, who have defeated MK Dons and Plymouth to reach this stage of the tournament. This match is reminiscent of the 2019 FA Cup final, with Watford, led by Tom Cleverley, currently facing a streak of three winless matches in the Championship after initially showing promise this season.

The game is scheduled for a 7:45 pm BST kick-off on Tuesday, September 24, 2024, at the Etihad Stadium in Manchester. In the UK, the match will be broadcast live on Sky Sports+, and subscribers can also access it via the Sky Go app.

The predicted line-up for Manchester City includes Ortega, Walker, Stones, Braithwaite, Lewis, O'Reilly, Nunes, McAtee, Doku, Grealish, and Foden, with notable substitutes like Ederson and Dias. Watford’s line-up remains undisclosed. Predictions favor City heavily, with betting odds from Betfair indicating a likelihood of City winning at 1/8, while Watford faces odds of 17/1 to win, and a draw is slated at 8/1.