Fresh off their first defeat in the Championship this season, Rotherham United return to AESSEAL New York Stadium in South Yorkshire for a date with Watford on Saturday.
The Millers conceded three second-half goals, losing 3-0 to Sunderland on Wednesday, while the Hornets bounced back from a narrow defeat versus Queens Park Rangers (QPR) over the weekend (3-2), defeating Middlesbrough 2-1.
Match preview
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A tough final 45 minutes inside the Stadium of Light has put a damper on a solid beginning to the new campaign for Paul Warne and his team.
They have nine points after six games, the same total for them at this point of the 2021-22 campaign, though it could be more as Rotherham have dropped four points from winning positions this season, scoring first against Swansea and QPR.
Their defeat in midweek was the first time in this domestic campaign that they had failed to tally the opening goal, winning only one of their previous five fixtures when going behind 1-0 dating back to the end of last season, failing to score in four of those encounters.
Rotherham created their share of opportunities on Wednesday, but they appeared fatigued while struggling to contend with the Black Cats out wide, with two of their three goals conceded coming via low crosses from the left-hand side into their penalty area.
That was their worst defeat in a Championship affair since dropping a road fixture to Portsmouth in the middle of April by that same score last season, while it was also the only time that they had conceded a second-half tally to this point of the 2022-23 campaign.
For the first time since the 2012-13 domestic season, Rotherham have won their opening two home fixtures, blanking Reading (4-0) and Birmingham (2-0), though they were eliminated from the EFL Cup, losing 1-0 at home to Morecambe in the second round.
The Millers have not allowed more than one goal in their last five Championship affairs played at AESSEAL New York Stadium.
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Some outstanding individual performances rescued Watford once again this week as they have now won four of their last five league matches played at Vicarage Road.
They conceded the opening goal on Tuesday for the fourth time in this domestic campaign but managed to fight back to beat Boro in the latter stages, with the winner coming deep into injury time.
Despite rumours surrounding several players being transfer targets for some time now, Rob Edwards has managed to keep his side focused on returning to the Premier League, currently in fourth on 12 points, just two behind the leaders Sheffield United.
Two of their next three league fixtures will be on the road, with the Hornets drawing all three of their away games thus far in 2022-23.
The Hornets have not won outside of Vicarage Road since edging Southampton 2-1 at St. Mary's Stadium back in March when Watford featured in the top flight.
In the EPL last season Watford conceded three or more goals in 11 separate encounters, an area which has greatly improved versus lower-tiered sides, with the club from Hertfordshire allowing the second-fewest goals in the league thus far (six).
Over their previous two league campaigns, they have only suffered one defeat in six September outings, losing at home to Wolves on September 11 last year.
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Team News
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Richard Wood had a brace for Rotherham in their previous home fixture as he is up to three goals on the season, tied for the team lead with Chiedozie Ogbene.
Wes Harding picked up his first assist of the campaign in that victory over Birmingham, and Viktor Johansson made three saves for his third clean sheet.
Despite missing a second-half penalty in that encounter, Daniel Barlaser still set up the opening goal, his fourth assist domestically this season as he leads the league in that department, while Conor Washington has started every one of their domestic affairs, scoring one goal since his move on a free transfer from Charlton Athletic in early July.
Joshua Kayode is expected to be fully recovered soon from his muscle injury, while we saw three new faces to their starting 11 on Wednesday as Lee Peltier, Wes Harding and Shane Ferguson replaced Grant Hall, Cameron Humphreys and Cohen Bramall.
Substitute Vakoun Bayo scored the winner for Watford in the 93rd minute on Tuesday, though it was Ismaila Sarr and Joao Pedro who grabbed the headlines as the Senegalese striker notched his second of the campaign with his Brazilian teammate assisting and being named Man of the Match.
Goalkeeper Daniel Bachmann has not conceded more than a single goal in his last three road fixtures, while Ken Sema is tied with Pedro and Sarr for assists this season (two).
Kortney Hause made his first appearance of the campaign since arriving on loan from Aston Villa, replacing Craig Cathcart with 10 minutes to play against Boro.
Imran Louza and Tom Dele-Bashiru are doubtful with knee injuries, while Samuel Kalu continues to nurse a hamstring strain.
Rotherham United possible starting lineup:
Johansson; Hall, Wood, Humphreys; Barlaser; Wiles, Rathbone, Bramall, Norton-Cuffy; Washington, Ogbene
Watford possible starting lineup:
Bachmann; Kabasele, Sierralta, Cathcart; Kamara, Kayembe, Choudhury, Sema; Dele-Bashiru; Pedro, Sarr
We say: Rotherham United 1-1 Watford
Rotherham have not beaten Watford in six previous meetings against them in the Championship, but they have been able to bounce back well from a tough outing, while the Hornets have not been quite as sharp in the attacking third on the road as they have been at home.
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Top tip
Joel Lefevre
