Prematch: Brentford vs Aston Villa
Villa is on the brink of completing their first league double over Brentford since 1946-47.
Published: April 20, 2023 16:00
WEATHER FORECAST
broken clouds
TEMPERATURE
league
STARTING AT
In short
Brentford are back in Premier League action following three straight losses against Aston Villa, looking to end a five-match winless run at Gtech Community Stadium on Saturday at 15:00 (GMT+1). Kickoff time for this fixture will be 15:00.
Brentford Struggle to Secure Victory After Five Match Winless Streak
Brentford are winless in five matches following a 2-0 loss against Wolves. Diego Costa scored his maiden goal for Wolves within half an hour to put them ahead before Hwang Hee-Chan put the match out of reach of Brentford with another late strike from Hwang Hee-Chan (69′). Brentford are only one point ahead of 10th-placed Fulham [42 points], having secured 43 points [10 Wins, 13 Draws & 8 Losses] through 10 Wins, 13 Draws, 13 Defeats & 8 Lies in 21 Premier League Games (8 Wins, 10 draws & 3 Losses]. Following three straight defeats they are sitting 9th with 43 Points [8 Wins 10 Draws 3 Losses]. Brentford last suffered five consecutive defeats between January/February 2017-18 when they suffered five consecutive league home losses to Millwall Lions. At home, however, Brentford have won their last four home league matches against them and hope to halt an unprecedented five-match winless run with victory here. Thomas Frank returned to a more traditional 4–3–3 formation against Wolves, leaving Ivan Toney, Bryan Mbeumo and Kevin Schade in attack – something he is expected to repeat against Wolves. Pontus Jansson (hamstring), Keane Lewis-Potter (knee), and Kristoffer Ajer (knee). Meanwhile Frank Onyeka and Vitaly Janelt played 60 minutes each in Brentford B’s 2-2 draw against Huddersfield on Tuesday.
Aston Villa Unbeaten Streak Continues with Impressive 3-0 Win Over Newcastle United
Last weekend, Aston Villa beat top-four contender Newcastle United by three goals for an emphatic 3-0 win, and have gone unbeaten since then, WWWWW. Unai has won twice as many matches that ended in defeat since taking on his managerial responsibilities and now boasts a 60 percent success rate [12W, 2D, 6L]. Villa has made incredible progress this season and are currently sitting 6th with 50 points after 15 wins, 5 draws and 11 losses. Following their impressive 4-0 victory in their reverse fixture against Brentford earlier in the season, they could complete an unprecedented league double over them since 1946-47. Ollie Watkins should lead Aston Villa’s 4-2-2–3-1 formation this weekend against Newcastle United, after scoring twice last time out and accounting for 45 percent of Villa’s goal-scoring efforts in the Premier League. Boubacar Kamara, Philippe Coutinho, and Matty Cash may return, with Jed Steer and Leon Bailey (hamstring injury) both being unavailable.
