Watford vs QPR

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On Saturday afternoon, Watford will host Queens Park Rangers at Vicarage Road to kick off their Championship season.

After a terribly dismal mid-table result in 2022–23, the Hornets will be vying for promotion this season, and QPR is one of many teams predicted to be in a survival battle.

Following a lackluster 11th-place finish in the previous season, Watford will be playing in the Championship for the second straight season for the first time in more than five years.

Many supporters and experts expected the Hornets to return to the Premier League almost away, but their season was marred by irritating inconsistency, and they wound up finishing six points behind Sunderland in sixth place.

Like most Hertfordshire summers, this one has been marked by change, with Chris Wilder leaving Vicarage Road in May and being replaced as manager by former Barnsley boss Valerien Ismael.

The 47-year-old's daring footballing style did not work out as well at West Bromwich Albion, which led to his departure from the Hawthorns after seven months. The Frenchman did exceptionally well in the 2020–21 season to lead the Tykes to sixth in the Championship.

The former Besiktas manager enters a dressing room that has seen the departure of two of its key players, Joao Pedro and Ismaila Sarr, who both left for Brighton & Hove Albion and Marseille this summer.

In preparation for the 2023–24 season, Vicarage Road has welcomed a number of seasoned second-tier veterans, including Jake Livermore and Tom Ince, who have transferred from West Brom and Reading, respectively.

When Michael Beale took over as QPR's manager after Mark Warburton left, the club was looking for a promotion push about this time last year. However, this season, Loftus Road has completely different objectives in mind.

Gareth Ainsworth, a former Wycombe Wanderers manager who is now in charge of the West London club, kept the R's in the division last season despite only winning two of their final 10 league games.

The highlight of Ainsworth's brief tenure at the club was a miraculous 2-1 victory against Vincent Kompany's Burnley in April. Goals from Chris Martin and Sam Field secured a rare maximum that all but assured safety with two games remaining.

Since the beginning of the summer, QPR has only pursued free agents, adding players like Asmir Begovic, Jack Colback, and Morgan Fox to a roster that appears headed for a relegation fight.

Paul Smyth, 25, is eager to make a good first impression at the club he left for Charlton Athletic in October 2020. He joins from League Two champions Leyton Orient after a 10-goal season in the fourth division.