Championship · 2025Riverside

Middlesbrough 5–1 Watford · Championship

5–1Historical match

Watford

LDLLL

A completed match from a finished season. This page is the record of what happened.

Match at a glance

Middlesbrough won 5–1.

Shots
2012
Shots on target
93
Expected goals
2.30.85
Possession
56%44%

Full time

What the match recorded

Middlesbrough beat Watford 5–1. Recorded in this match (Middlesbrough – Watford): shots 20–12, shots on target 9–3, expected goals 2.3–0.85, possession 56%–44%. This is what was recorded. It is not a claim that the result was foreseeable.

Pre-match record

What the data showed before kick-off. Kept for reference; it did not know the result.

Watford's recent record differs from the season

moderate

Watford's last-five goals scored average is below their season average.

0.4 goals/match ▲Goals forLast 5 · Season1.18 goals/match
Evidence and caveat

Comparison: An unweighted last-five average is compared with the unweighted season average.

Window: last_5 versus season

MetricLast 5SeasonBaseline
Goals for0.4 goals/match1.18 goals/match1.27 goals/match

Caveat: Five matches are sensitive to opponent mix and isolated match states.

Recent scheduling adds useful context

moderate

A compressed recent schedule is recorded for Middlesbrough, Watford.

2.7 days ▲Rest daysMiddlesbrough · Watford3.7 days
Evidence and caveat

Comparison: Rest days and completed matches in the prior 14 days are shown directly.

Window: previous 14 days

MetricMiddlesbroughWatfordBaseline
Rest days2.7 days3.7 days—
Matches last 14 days3 matches3 matches—

Caveat: The database does not describe travel, rotation decisions or player-level workload.

Middlesbrough show a distinct attacking-volume record

weak

Middlesbrough's shot volume and the opposing shot-allowance context sit above their competition baselines.

16.2 shots/match ▲ShotsMiddlesbrough · Watford13.9 shots/match
Evidence and caveat

Comparison: Team shot volume is paired with the opponent's recorded shot allowance.

Window: season

MetricMiddlesbroughWatfordBaseline
Shots16.2 shots/match13.9 shots/match12.3 shots/match
Shots against9.95 shots/match11.6 shots/match12.4 shots/match

Caveat: Shot volume describes activity; it does not establish finishing quality or a match outcome.

This match

Match statistics

  • Shots20 shots12 shotsMiddlesbrough 20 shots, Watford 12 shots
  • Shots on target9 shots3 shotsMiddlesbrough 9 shots, Watford 3 shots
  • Expected goals2.3 xG0.85 xGMiddlesbrough 2.3 xG, Watford 0.85 xG
  • Possession56%44%Middlesbrough 56%, Watford 44%
  • Corners6 corners3 cornersMiddlesbrough 6 corners, Watford 3 corners
  • Fouls8 fouls10 foulsMiddlesbrough 8 fouls, Watford 10 fouls

Every shot

Shot map

Every recorded shot, placed where it was taken and sized by its expected-goals value. Arrows show each team’s attacking direction.

Edo Kayembe · Watford · 35′ · 0.01 xG · off target or blockedLuke Ayling · Middlesbrough · 40′ · 0.01 xG · on targetCallum Brittain · Middlesbrough · 41′ · 0.01 xG · off target or blockedMorgan Whittaker · Middlesbrough · 62′ · 0.01 xG · off target or blockedAidan Morris · Middlesbrough · 71′ · 0.01 xG · off target or blockedLeo Castledine · Middlesbrough · 86′ · 0.01 xG · off target or blockedAlexander Gilbert · Middlesbrough · 5′ · 0.02 xG · off target or blockedMarc Bola · Watford · 21′ · 0.02 xG · off target or blockedLeo Castledine · Middlesbrough · 71′ · 0.02 xG · on targetImrân Louza · Watford · 80′ · 0.02 xG · off target or blockedMorgan Whittaker · Middlesbrough · 6′ · 0.03 xG · goalImrân Louza · Watford · 20′ · 0.03 xG · off target or blockedSontje Hansen · Middlesbrough · 26′ · 0.03 xG · off target or blockedEdo Kayembe · Watford · 80′ · 0.03 xG · off target or blockedSontje Hansen · Middlesbrough · 51′ · 0.04 xG · off target or blockedMorgan Whittaker · Middlesbrough · 56′ · 0.04 xG · off target or blockedLeo Castledine · Middlesbrough · 77′ · 0.04 xG · off target or blockedEdo Kayembe · Watford · 8′ · 0.05 xG · off target or blockedAlexander Gilbert · Middlesbrough · 53′ · 0.05 xG · on targetJames Abankwah · Watford · 70′ · 0.05 xG · off target or blockedLuca Kjerrumgaard · Watford · 18′ · 0.06 xG · off target or blockedLuca Kjerrumgaard · Watford · 33′ · 0.06 xG · on targetTommy Conway · Middlesbrough · 73′ · 0.08 xG · off target or blockedImrân Louza · Watford · 28′ · 0.11 xG · off target or blockedMorgan Whittaker · Middlesbrough · 58′ · 0.11 xG · off target or blockedJames Abankwah · Watford · 48′ · 0.14 xG · goalLuca Kjerrumgaard · Watford · 9′ · 0.19 xG · on targetDavid Strelec · Middlesbrough · 45′ · 0.20 xG · goalTommy Conway · Middlesbrough · 90′ · 0.23 xG · goalDavid Strelec · Middlesbrough · 61′ · 0.24 xG · on targetMorgan Whittaker · Middlesbrough · 58′ · 0.26 xG · goalTommy Conway · Middlesbrough · 75′ · 0.82 xG · goal
  • off target
  • on target
  • goal
  • penalty
  • size = xG

Middlesbrough: 20 shots, 9 on target, 2.26 xG. Watford: 12 shots, 3 on target, 0.77 xG.

How the match built

Expected-goals timeline

Expected goals accumulated minute by minute. Circles mark the goals that were actually scored.

01.252.50′HT90′Morgan Whittaker · Middlesbrough · 6′David Strelec · Middlesbrough · 45′Morgan Whittaker · Middlesbrough · 58′Tommy Conway · Middlesbrough · 75′Tommy Conway · Middlesbrough · 90′James Abankwah · Watford · 48′

The step line is cumulative expected goals; circles mark goals. Final: Middlesbrough 2.26 xG · Watford 0.77 xG.

History

Head-to-head

Recent meetings between these teams.

Last 5 meetings

2Middlesbrough
0Draws
3Watford
Watford — Middlesbrough · Championship3–0
Middlesbrough — Watford · Championship0–1
Watford — Middlesbrough · Championship2–1
Middlesbrough — Watford · Championship3–1
Watford — Middlesbrough · Championship2–3

Head-to-Head & Recent Meetings

Metric comparison

Team comparison

Season averages, with the sample size beside each metric.

Where the edge is

Season: Middlesbrough favored in 11 of 11 directional metrics · Watford in 0

led this metric higher value (descriptive) too close

Window

Season

Middlesbrough45 matchesWatford45 matches
1.56 goals/match ▲Goals scored45/451.18 goals/match
1 goal/match ▲Goals allowed45/451.36 goals/match
1.5 xG/match ▲Expected goals45/451.22 xG/match
16.2 shots/match ▲Shots44/4513.9 shots/match
4.93 shots/match ▲Shots on target44/454.44 shots/match
60% ●Possession44/4551.4%
6.95 corners/match ●Corners44/455.02 corners/match
9.55 fouls/matchFouls44/4410.9 fouls/match

Evidence quality

How much supports this analysis

Grade A · Strong evidenceStrong evidence — limited
Season samples45 / 45home / away teams
Recent samples5 / 5last-five windows
FreshnessLess than one dayfrom nearest prior match
  • The fixture is outside the configured active season.
  • Recent samples and important metric coverage meet the strong evidence threshold.

Known unknowns

  • Lineups, injuries, suspensions and tactical changes are not available in the retained dataset.
  • Some metrics are unavailable or below their observation minimum: cards.
  • The fixture season differs from the competition's configured active season.
Analysis cutoff: Sat, 25 Apr 2026, 15:30 UTC · analysis-v4

Team rankings in Championship

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