Bristol City and Watford kick off the Championship weekend with a Friday night clash under the lights at Ashton Gate.

Neither team will be particularly pleased with their start to the new season, with both sides heading into the weekend in the bottom half of the table, with each club desperate to sign off with a win before a long international break.

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Optimism was high at Bristol City only a week ago after the Robins had earned three wins inside a week to leave them sitting pretty in fourth place in the Championship table.

However, Michael Skubala's side have since fallen to back to back defeats, losing 4-1 on the road against Southampton before a disappointing 1-0 defeat at home against a newly promoted Lincoln side on Tuesday night.

The most recent defeat has seen the West Country side drop into the bottom half of the table, but know that victory on Friday night before heading into the extended international break will see them climb into the top five - at least for the best part of 24 hours.

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Alessio Dionisi is another manager who is experiencing a difficult start to life to the Championship, the newly appointed Watford manager currently seeing his sides in the midst of a seven game spell with only one victory.

The Hornets started the campaign well under the Italian with back to back wins, including a notable victory over a highly fancied Southampton side on the opening day of the league season, and followed that up with league draws against Wrexham and West Ham.

Five points from their opening three matches against teams all expected to be firmly in the promotion pictured appeared a strong start for the Hertfordshire side, but results have not improved since, with three defeats in their last four matches.

The Hornets haven't won a match away from home in any competition since their last visit to Ashton Gate back in February (also their only away win in 2026), and have lost seven of their nine matches on the road since, scoring just once in three games on their travels this season.

Watford have slipped down to 17th place in the Championship table following their home defeat by Stoke last weekend, wedged just three points off the play offs but also only four points above the relegation zone, making Friday's clash a huge one.

Bristol City have lost only one of their last eight home games against Watford, including a 5-1 win in the third round of the FA Cup last season, but that solitary defeat did come the last time the two teams met in February earlier this year.

How to watch Bristol City vs Watford

  • Location: Ashton Gate, Bristol, UK
  • Date and time: Friday 18th September 2026, 8pm
  • How to watch: Sky Sports Football, Sky Sports Ultra HDR

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