Watford seal Premier League promotion with victory over Millwall

Football - Championship - Watford v Millwall - Watford, Britain - April 24, 2021. A Watford fan jumps into water as fans celebrate promotion to the Premier League. [Action Images via Reuters/Matthew Childs]

Watford secured promotion to the Premier League on Saturday with two games to spare, after a 1-0 win over Millwall in the (second-tier) Championship at Vicarage Road.

Ismaila Sarr's 11th-minute penalty proved enough as Watford guaranteed one of the two automatic promotion spots alongside Championship leaders Norwich City, who booked their top-flight spot last weekend.

Xisco Munoz's Watford have secured an immediate return to the top flight -- which has been worth at least 160 million pounds ($221.3 million) in previous seasons -- having finished second-bottom of the Premier League in the 2019-20 campaign.

Watford were one of the playoff contenders after a mixed start to the second-division campaign but found another gear when Munoz replaced Vladimir Ivic as manager in December.

The Spanish manager has guided Watford to 17 wins in 24 Championship games, opening up a 10-point gap over third-placed Brentford, who have a game in hand.

Watford's victory means Norwich must wait to be crowned champions, despite a 3-1 win over Queens Park Rangers.

Daniel Farke's side need two points from their remaining two games to guarantee the second division title. 

By AFP 1 day ago
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