Ironically, it was Gianfranco Zola who pulled last season’s Manchester derby FA Cup third round tie out from the bag and he will now bring his Championship side to the Etihad Stadium at the same stage.
Watford are currently in sixth place in the Championship table after Saturday’s 4-1 win over Barnsley at Vicarage Road, so are sure to be a tough proposition for Roberto Mancini’s men when they arrive in Manchester.
City haven’t faced the Hornets since they were in the Premier League in the 2006/07 season and on that occasion both matches finished with honours even, with Watford earning a 0-0 draw at the City of Manchester Stadium back on Monday 4 December.
You have to go back to the 2001/02 season for City’s last victory over Watford when they did the double over them in a pair of fixtures which included a 3-0 home win at Maine Road in Division One.
City and Watford last contested an FA Cup fixture in 1996/97 when the teams met at Maine Road in a fourth round match which the Blues won 3-1.
Third round fixtures are due to take place on the weekend of 5 and 6 January.
We’ll bring you ticket details here on mcfc.co.uk as soon as we have them.
