Brentford will host Aston Villa at the Gtech Community Stadium on Sunday, looking to end their short losing streak.
Brentford have lost four of their last five Premier League matches, and they will be under pressure to bounce back strongly when they take on Aston Villa at the Gtech Community Stadium on Sunday afternoon. Thomas Frank’s men are 11th in the league table, and they will hope to push for a top-half finish this season.
There is no doubt that the Bees have the quality to cause problems for Aston Villa, and the home fans will be expecting the players to produce a strong reaction here. Meanwhile, Aston Villa are third in the league table, and they will hope to close the gap with the league leaders. A win here could send them to the top of the table if the other results go their way.
Aston Villa are unbeaten in their last five league matches, and they have picked up four wins in that time. The Hard Tackle takes a closer look at the encounter ahead of the latest meeting between the two sides.
Team News & Tactics
Brentford
The home team have several injury problems heading into this contest. Rico Henry is ruled out with a knee injury until the end of the season. Star attacker Bryan Mbeumo has an ankle injury, and he will return to action in April.
Aaron Hickey, Kevin Schade, Joshua Dasilva, Mathias Jensen, and Kristoffer Ajer are all expected to return to action next month. Ivan Toney remains suspended. and he will return to action midway through January.
The home side will shape up in a 4-3-3 formation, with Mark Flekken in goal. Saman Ghoddos and Vitaly Janelt will start as the full-backs, and they will look to help out at both ends of the pitch. Ethan Pinnock will start alongside Ben Mee at the heart of the defence.
As for the midfield unit, Christian Norgaard will feature as the defensive midfielder. The Dane will look to break up opposition attacks. Frank Onyeka and Shandon Baptiste will start alongside him, and they will look to add creativity and drive to the side. Neal Maupay will lead the line for Brentford against Aston Villa, with Yoane Wissa and Keane Lewis-Potter on either side of him.
Probable Lineup (4-3-3): Flekken; Ghoddos, Pinnock, Mee, Janelt; Onyeka, Norgaard, Baptiste; Lewis-Potter, Maupay, Wissa
Aston Villa
Emiliano Buendia and Tyrone Mings are ruled out for the remainder of the campaign with knee injuries. Meanwhile, Lucas Digne and Douglas Luiz are suspended because of an accumulation of yellow cards.
Aston Villa are likely to shape up in their usual 4-4-1-1 formation, with Emiliano Martinez in goal. Ezri Konsa is likely to be deployed as the right-back here due to the lack of options in the full-back positions. Alex Moreno will start as the left-back. Diego Carlos and Pau Torres will feature as the central defenders.
Boubacar Kamara and Youri Tielemans will start in central midfield. The two players will look to add defensive cover and control in the middle of the park. Leon Bailey and Moussa Diaby are likely to be deployed as the wingers. They will look to add pace creativity and goals to the side from the wide areas.
John McGinn will start as the central attacking midfielder, and he will look to link the midfield with the attack. Finally, Ollie Watkins will lead the line for the West Midlands club against Brentford on Sunday.
Probable Lineup (4-4-1-1): Martinez; Konsa, Carlos, Torres, Moreno; Bailey, Kamara, Tielemans, Diaby; McGinn; Watkins
Key Stats
- Brentford are undefeated in ten of their last 11 matches against Aston Villa in all competitions.
- Aston Villa are undefeated in 11 of their last 12 matches in the Premier League.
- 18 goals have been scored in the last six matches between Brentford and Aston Villa.
- Brentford have lost four of their last five matches across all competitions.
Key Player
Ollie Watkins
The 27-year-old Aston Villa striker has been in outstanding form this season, amassing eight goals and six assists in 16 Premier League matches. He will look to influence the game in the final third with his goalscoring ability and creativity.
The Englishman’s ability to hold up the ball and bring others into play will make it difficult for the Brentford defence to contain Aston Villa. Watkins is thus our key player to watch out for this weekend.
Prediction
Brentford 1-2 Aston Villa
Brentford are in disappointing form right now, and they have picked up just two wins from their last six league matches. However, they have an exceptional head-to-head record against Aston Villa. The Bees are undefeated in 10 of their last 11 matches against the West Midlands club, and they will look to make life difficult for the away side here.
The home side will look to grind out a positive result here, and this will be a close contest. However, Aston Villa are in impressive form right now, and they have the confidence and momentum with them. The away side have the quality to edge this contest and grind out a narrow away win.
