Watford vs Liverpool Betting Preview

Liverpool head into their Carling Cup second leg, semi-final against Watford this evening on the back of three straight losses. The Reds won the first game 1-0 in windy conditions a fortnight ago back at Anfield. Already severely hampered by a horrendous injury list this season, Rafael Benitez now has further problems with Hyypia ruled out with a thigh injury, and winger Antonio Nunez suspended - although some might see that as a good thing. Even Steven Gerrard is reportedly suffering from a slight hamstring strain, although the Liverpool skipper is expected to play a full part. While the Liverpool first team at the weekend were outplayed by relegation threatened Southampton, Watford minus several first team regulars came away from Wigan with an impressive 2-2 draw. Not only will that result against the second placed side have boosted confidence, but valuable players such as Heidar Helguson, Neal Ardley, Paul Devlin and Neil Cox all had a valuable rest ahead of tonight's game.It was this time last week in which I successfully anticipated Liverpool's demise at Burnley in the FA Cup. The initial price last week on the Championship side were 13/2, which was a massive price considering Benitez had stated his intention to field a weakened team. Tonight Watford are a best price 4/1, but unlike Burnley will be going against a much stronger Liverpool outfit who will be reeling from the last three results. I fully expect the Reds to come out firing tonight and to score at least a couple of goals. It does come therefore as a pleasant surprise to see VC Bet offer 10/11 on the visitors winning the game. Yes, they have lost the last three but remember the FA Cup defeat was with virtually a youth team, and before that the loss against Man Utd was only down to a horrendous goalkeeping error. Previous to the last three games, Liverpool had put together a tidy run including two easy victories at West Brom and Norwich. Of course a weakened Liverpool defence does open up possibilities for the Hornets, and in particular for Helguson, who at 5/2 is worth backing to score at anytime. His heading ability may well cause the visitors minus their best defender problems.