Watford 2-1 Preston North End: Match Report, Goals, Stats and Ratings
Championship Matchday 6 · Tuesday 8 September 2026 · Vicarage Road, Watford · referee F. Hallam · full time
Full time: Watford 2-1 Preston North End
Watford won 2-1 at home to Preston North End in Championship Matchday 6 on Tuesday 8 September 2026. The goals: Callum Lang 5', Edo Kayembe 69', Mamadou Doumbia 76'.
How Watford won it
Preston North End struck first through Callum Lang in the 5th minute. Watford levelled at 1-1 in the 69th minute through Edo Kayembe. Watford turned it round: Mamadou Doumbia made it 2-1 in the 76th minute, set up by Iker Bravo.
It was 0-1 at half-time, and the second half turned the match the other way.
The lead changed hands once.
The referee, F. Hallam, showed 2 yellow cards: 0 to Watford and 2 to Preston North End.
Watford: A. Dionisi, 4-1-4-1 · Preston North End: P. Heckingbottom, 5-3-2.
Moneyball's prediction against the result
Moneyball did not publish a pre-match estimate for this match, so there is nothing to mark it against.
Why it went this way
On the day the expected goals were 1.93 for Watford and 2.02 for Preston North End.
Preston North End left about 1.0 goals' worth of chances on the pitch.
Watford had 5 shots on target, Preston North End 6.
Watford's goalkeeper made 5 saves.
Watford had 61% of the ball and turned it into the win.
Where the two sides stood before this match
Watford came into it with 12 Championship matches played, scoring 0.8 and conceding 1.7 a match, with 1.10 expected goals for and 1.89 against, and had won 25% of their matches.
Preston North End came into it with 12 Championship matches played, scoring 0.8 and conceding 2.1 a match, with 1.25 expected goals for and 1.63 against, and had won 8% of their matches.
Watford vs Preston North End: the match in numbers
| Watford | Match statistics | Preston North End |
|---|---|---|
| 61% | Ball possession | 39% |
| 1.93 | Expected goals (xG) | 2.02 |
| 15 | Total shots | 18 |
| 5 | Shots on target | 6 |
| 3 | Big chances | 4 |
| 528 | Total passes | 322 |
| 84% | Pass accuracy | 76% |
| 2 | Corners | 4 |
| 7 | Fouls | 10 |
| 2 | Offsides | 1 |
| 7 | Tackles | 15 |
| 5 | Saves | 3 |
| 0 | Yellow cards | 2 |
Team statistics from Sportmonks.
Player ratings and man of the match
Man of the match: Edo Kayembe (Watford), rated 7.9 by Sportmonks, with 1 goal.
Watford
- Edo Kayembe 7.9 1 goal
- Mamadou Doumbia 7.3 1 goal
- Iker Bravo 7.3 1 assist
- Mattie Pollock 7.2
- Federico Ravaglia 7.1
Preston North End
- Callum Lang 7.7 1 goal
- Andrija Vukcevic 7.0
- Johnny Kenny 7.0
- Odeluga Offiah 7.0
- Léo Leroy 6.9
The lowest-rated starter was Kévin Keben at 6.3. Ratings run from 0 to 10; around 7.0 is a solid match.
What comes next
- Watford: Norwich City vs Watford Saturday 31 October 2026 · Championship
- Preston North End: Stoke City vs Preston North End Saturday 31 October 2026 · Championship
Each preview has Moneyball's estimate for the next match, published before kick-off and marked against the result afterwards, as this one is.
Questions about Watford vs Preston North End
What was the score in Watford vs Preston North End?
Watford 2-1 Preston North End (half-time 0-1), Championship, Tuesday 8 September 2026.
Who scored in Watford vs Preston North End?
Callum Lang 5', Edo Kayembe 69', Mamadou Doumbia 76'.
Did Moneyball predict Watford vs Preston North End correctly?
Moneyball did not publish a pre-match estimate for this match, so there is nothing to mark it against.
Who was man of the match in Watford vs Preston North End?
Edo Kayembe, rated 7.9 by Sportmonks.
Who refereed Watford vs Preston North End?
F. Hallam.
Every match, before and after
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