Manchester United vs. Watford: Preview, How to Watch, Betting Odds for the Premier League Fixture
After the dourness of winter, the nourishing warmth of spring. As the season ticks towards a close, Manchester United appears to have awoken from hibernation.
Louis Van Gaal's club stared soporifically down the barrel of a UEFA Europa League exit to F.C. Midtjylland a week ago, only to haul itself awake with the alarm ringing and pull off a hectic 5-1 victory, having trailed early in the game.
Then it swatted aside a poor Arsenal performance on Sunday, to leave a different mood around Old Trafford.
Where there was depression there is now a strange kind of hope, with whispers, even, that the maligned Louis Van Gaal could stay until the end of the season and perhaps past it, too.
Of course, there is veracity in the football truism that you are only as good as your last result.
Watford, under its urbane Spanish manager Quique Sanchez Flores, has had a quite remarkable season, sitting slap bang in mid-table in the Premier League at 10th with 37 points from 27 games, quite safe already from the maw of relegation.
There may, then, be the desire for the club to switch off and coast to the end of the season. But a victory for Watford would put it just four points behind United and in with a very real shot of qualifying for the Europa League next season. United, for all its recent promise, has not had a good enough season to be able to switch off.
MATCH DETAILS
Location: Old Trafford
Kick-off: Wednesday March 2, 8 p.m. GMT.
Odds: Reflecting its improved form, Manchester United is 8/13 on with most bookmakers to win the game. The most common price for a draw is 14/5, while Watford are a best-price 11/2 to take three points away from Old Trafford.
Television: Neither BT Sport nor Sky Sports, the two U.K. broadcasters with Premier League rights, are showing the game, though you can watch it in Benin, the Bahamas and Belize. In the United States, coverage is provided by NBC Sports Live Extra and Premier League Extra Time.
Spain has coverage through Movistar TV Futbol and beIN Sports Connect streaming service, which allows viewing across desktop, smartphone and tablet.
In the U.K., Sky Sports News's Gillette Soccer Special program will have live updates, although no live pictures, via studio commentary.
Radio: BBC Radio 5 live and talkSport will have updates from Old Trafford from reporters stationed at the game. For subscribers, MUTV, the club's official station, has live radio commentary and half-time reaction.
