Brentford vs Aston villa Preview
Watch Brentford vs Aston villa Preview, as brentford will be looking for cut off through their lack of form by this meeting as they host Aston villa at Brentford Community stadium on Sunday fixtures.
As Aston villa is seven points trailing with many games remaining, brentford are about to claim an Improbable place in Europe. Aston villa’s side remain in their fifth win on the last weekend.
Following a 2-0 defeat to relegation-threatened Wolves last time out, Brentford have now lost each of their last three Premier League games – as many as in their previous 21.
That represents the Bees’ worst run since the start of last year and has seen them slip down the table to ninth place, with a coveted top-half finish now in some jeopardy; fellow London clubs Fulham, Chelsea and Crystal Palace are all on their coat-tails.
Having also seen his side keep just one clean sheet during their last 10 league matches, Thomas Frank should have no trouble pinpointing where their frailties lie quite a concern, considering the form of this week’s opponents.
All of which should be taken in context, as though they have not won since seeing off Southampton midway through March, Brentford are still only one win away from matching last season’s final points total.
After their disappointment against Wolves, they now tackle another Midlands club on Saturday afternoon and will welcome Aston Villa to Gtech Community Stadium having won each of their last four home games against the Birmingham side – a sequence dating back to 2017.
As they have only failed to score in two of their last 17 Premier League home fixtures, finding the net in each of their last nine, Frank’s men may therefore fancy their chances of throwing a spanner into Villa’s well-oiled machine.
Team news and Injury
Thomas Frank shake up his squad in search of a return to form, Brentford’s starting XI could look a little different this week compared to the side which began their loss at Wolves.
Switching back to a three-man defence could prove difficult, though, due to injury absentees; meanwhile, Yoane Wissa and Mikkel Damsgaard head the queue of those pushing for inclusion further forward.
Kristoffer Ajer and Keane Lewis-Potter are both still unavailable for the Bees, while Pontus Jansson’s recent thigh injury has not only curtailed his season but also brought the curtain down on a successful stay with the club – the Swedish defender returns to Malmo this summer.
Meanwhile, ex-Brentford pair Ollie Watkins and Ezri Konsa will feature against their former club on Saturday. Watkins has already matched his best top-flight total of 14 goals this season and now aims to become the first Aston Villa player to score 15 or more times in the Premier League since Christian Benteke 10 years ago.
From an advanced midfield role, Birmingham-born Jacob Ramsey has been involved in five goals from his last five games – as many as in his previous 37 – while both Boubacar Kamara and Philippe Coutinho could return in time to join him in Villa’s matchday squad.
Due to a hamstring problem, Leon Bailey is set to miss out again, but regular right-back Matty Cash hopes to be included upon recovering from his calf injury.
Aston villa vs Brentford head-to-head stats
Aston Villa have a good record against Brentford and have won seven out of the 17 matches played between the two teams, as opposed to Brentford’s four victories. After a run of three defeats in their first three games against Aston Villa, Brentford have won their last four league matches against the away side in the top flight.
Aston Villa have earned seven points from their three Premier League games away from home under Unai Emery and have defeated Chelsea and Tottenham Hotspur during this period.
Brentford have suffered defeats in their last three games in the Premier League – as many defeats as they had suffered in the 21 such games preceding this run. Aston Villa won the reverse fixture by a 4-0 margin and have not completed the league double over Brentford since the 1946-47 campaign
Aston villa vs Brentford Prediction
Aston Villa have shown marked improvement under Unai Emery this season and will look to make the most of their purple patch. Ollie Watkins has been in sublime form over the past month and will be intent on adding to his goal tally in this fixture.
Brentford can pack a punch on their day and are particularly formidable on their own turf. Aston Villa are the better team at the moment, however, and should be able to win this game.
