Preview: Swansea City vs. Brentford - prediction, team news, lineups

Promotion rivals Swansea City and Brentford meet at the Liberty Stadium on Wednesday evening looking to move a step closer to a place in the Premier League.

Swansea currently sit in second place after winning four of their last five Championship fixtures, while Brentford are unbeaten in 16 matches in the second tier.

Match preview

© Reuters

When Swansea cashed in on Joe Rodon in October, manager Steve Cooper would naturally have had fears about the progression of a club who were having to balance the books.

However, Cooper has continued to work wonders at the Liberty Stadium, following 13 points from five games in the Championship with a 5-1 victory over Nottingham Forest in the FA Cup fifth round.

Promotion remains a priority for a club who will be braced for competition from several teams below them, including the next visitors to their South Wales home.

Nevertheless, Cooper would have taken satisfaction from how some of his squad players impressed against Forest, aided by Aston Villa loanee Conor Hourihane.

Everything is heading in the right direction for Swansea at this stage of the season, although Cooper knows that things could quickly change if they under-perform in their next match.

While Thomas Frank will be disappointed with cup defeats against Tottenham Hotspur and Leicester City, the Brentford boss will be happy to focus his attention on league matters.

After an indifferent start to the campaign, the Bees have recovered to put themselves on the brink of moving into the automatic promotion places with a game in hand.

Frank will be the first to admit that it will count for nothing if they lose out on Wednesday night, but the opportunity should provide extra motivation to a group of players who have showed few signs of losing in the league since October.

That could soon change when coming up against a team of similar ability and style, although Frank will be optimistic that his players have the character to cope with the increasing expectations which have been placed on their shoulders.

Swansea City Championship form: LWWDWW Swansea City form (all competitions): WDWWWW

Brentford Championship form: WDWWWW Brentford form (all competitions): WWLWWL

Team News

© Reuters

Frank will be able to call upon Ivan Toney, who missed Brentford's FA Cup defeat to Leicester through suspension.

Goalkeeper David Raya will return between the sticks, while Henrik Dalsgaard, Rico Henry, Mathias Jensen and Bryan Mbuemo should also be involved from the opening whistle.

Ben Cabango, Jay Fulton, Jake Bidwell, Jamal Lowe and Andre Ayew are all expected to return to the Swansea starting lineup.

Korey Smith is likely to keep his place in a three-man midfield, leaving Hourihane and Yan Dhanda to take a place among the replacements.

Swansea City possible starting lineup: Woodman; Bennett, Cabango, Guehi; Roberts, Grimes, Fulton, Bidwell; Smith; Ayew, Lowe

Brentford possible starting lineup: Raya; Dalsgaard, Pinnock, Sorensen, Henry; Jensen, Janelt, Ghoddos; Mbuemo, Toney, Canos

We say: Swansea City 1-1 Brentford

In the current climate, Swansea will feel that an extra day of recovery could make all the difference in a game of this magnitude. However, we cannot ignore Brentford's unbeaten streak, and we expect an entertaining encounter to end in a share of the spoils.

Top betting tip