Preview: Brentford vs Brighton & Hove Albion - prediction, team news, lineups

European-chasing Brentford welcome a struggling Brighton & Hove Albion side to the Gtech Community Stadium for a Premier League contest on Saturday afternoon.

The Seagulls claimed a 2-1 victory in the revere fixture at the Amex Stadium in November and are looking to complete a top-flight double over the Bees for the first time since the 2021-22 campaign.

Match preview

Brentford have been one of the surprise packages in the Premier League this season following a significant summer of change in West London, with head coach Keith Andrews seamlessly taking the baton from Thomas Frank and transforming the club into a genuine European contender.

The Bees have accumulated 20 points in their last 10 Premier League games (W6 D2 L2), as many as they collected in their first 16 matches this term (W6 D2 L8), with seven of those points picked up across their last three games against Aston Villa (1-0), Newcastle (3-2) and leaders Arsenal (1-1).

Andrews’s side, who edged past non-league Macclesfield (1-0) in the FA Cup fourth round on Monday, were tipped by many to be involved in a relegation scrap this season, but they currently sit seventh in the Premier League table, two points behind Liverpool in sixth, four points behind Chelsea in fifth and five points behind Man United in fourth with 12 games still to play.

Brentford have relied on their long-throw expertise over the last two campaigns, scoring a total of 10 goals from those situations which is at least six more than any other team in the Premier League. In fact, they are the first team to score 10+ throw-in goals in the space of two seasons since Stoke City in 2008-09 (nine) and 2009-10 (five).

The Bees, who beat Saturday’s opponents Brighton by a 4-2 scoreline on home soil last season, are looking to win consecutive home league matches against the Seagulls for the first time since a run of four wins recorded between 1998 and 2007.

It is fair to say that Brighton’s Premier League form has taken a dramatic nosedive, with no team in the division winning fewer matches than the Seagulls since December (W1 D6 L6) – their solitary win came against relegation-threatened Burnley in January (2-0).

During this miserable period, Brighton have slipped from fifth in the table down to 14th place, with a narrow 1-0 defeat at Aston Villa just over a week ago leaving them seven points above the relegation zone and nine points behind Saturday’s opponents Brentford in seventh spot.

The pressure is mounting on head coach Fabian Hurzeler, who oversaw a 3-0 defeat at Liverpool in the FA Cup fourth round last weekend. The 32-yeaar-old has admitted that he and his players “can't feel sorry for ourselves” and ‘taking the right small steps’ is required for their fortunes to turn around.

In the Premier League, Brighton are averaging 13 shots per game, four shots on target per match and 27 touches in the opposition’s box per 90 minutes this season, all their lowest averages since the 2021-22 campaign (13 shots, four shots on target, 25 touches in the opposition’s box).

The Seagulls head to the Gtech Community Stadium this weekend having lost their last two league games by a 1-0 scoreline, the second time this season they have failed to net in back-to-back games. They have not endured a three-game goalless drought since January 2024.

Brentford Premier League form:

Brentford form (all competitions):

Brighton & Hove Albion Premier League form:

Brighton & Hove Albion form (all competitions):

Team News

Brentford are still having to cope without long-term absentees Antoni Milambo, Fabio Carvalho and Josh Dasilva (all knee), but they will be boosted by the return of key attacker Kevin Schade from a three-match ban.

Schade could be joined a three-man attack by Dango Ouattara and top scorer Igor Thiago, who has 17 Premier League goals to his name, while Yehor Yarmolyuk will be hoping to force his way back into centre-midfield ahead of either Jordan Henderson or Vitaly Yanelt.

Nathan Collins has been benched for Brentford’s last two Premier League games, but Andrews will consider recalling the centre-back at the expense of Kristoffer Ajer, while Sepp van den Berg, Michael Kayode and Rico Henry should all retain their stating spots in a four-man defence.

As for Brighton, Solly March, Adam Webster and Stefanos Tzimas all remain sidelined with knee injuries, while Yasin Ayari will be assessed ahead of kickoff after missing the last three matches with a shoulder problem.

James Milner, 40, will surpass Gareth Barry (653) and become the all-time record appearance-maker in the Premier League if he features in some capacity this weekend. A start in midfield is unlikely, though, with Carlos Baleba, Pascal Gross and Jack Hinshelwood all battling for a place in Hurzeler’s XI.

Both Hinshelwood and Danny Welbeck scored in the aforementioned 2-1 win over Brentford four months ago. The former of whom is set to replace Charalampos Kostoulas as the central striker and could be supported in attack by wingers Kaoru Mitoma and Yankuba Minteh.

Brentford possible starting lineup:

Kelleher; Kayode, Van den Berg, Collins, Henry; Yarmolyuk, Henderson; Ouattara, Jensen, Schade; Thiago

Brighton & Hove Albion possible starting lineup:

Verbruggen; Kadioglu, Van Hecke, Dunk, De Cuyper; Gross, Baleba; Minteh, Rutter, Mitoma; Welbeck

We say: Brentford 3-1 Brighton & Hove Albion

Brighton have lost just two of their last nine Premier League meetings with Brentford, but they head into this weekend’s clash as underdogs against an in-form Bees side that has averaged nearly two points per game at home this season.

Both teams will fancy their chances of making the net ripple, yet Brentford’s more potent frontline could prove decisive. We are backing the hosts to outscore their opponents and secure three valuable points.

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