MY ACCOUNT
– Brentford only lost once at home all season
– Wolves struggling on the road and beaten 4-0 last time out
– Recommended bet: Back Brentford to win to nil
This match will have felt like a lifetime in coming for supporters of both Brentford and Wolves, with both sets of fans smarting from 4-0 defeats last weekend.
But, given the contrasting confidence levels, one set of players may be more eager than the other to get back on the pitch and attempt to put a humiliating experience behind them.
For Brentford, their performance in a 4-0 drubbing at Aston Villa was partly an extension of a trend but was also certainly in large part down to circumstance.
While the Bees’ lack of points on the road will rightly be a concern at Villa Park last weekend the situation played a huge role.
Villa Park was bouncing and the home side was clearly lifted by the departure of Steven Gerrard.
A careless early goal conceded by Brentford ignited the stadium as adrenaline and energy went through the roof — and while the Bees will not be pleased with how they buckled, it was a unique set of circumstances that saw Villa race into a 3-0 lead to kill the game early on.
For Wolves, it was all trend — and a worrying one at that.
A 4-0 home defeat in which they were picked apart by a Leicester side who had previously failed to take a single point from five away games was just yet another disaster for the hosts, who can now be in no doubt that they are in a serious relegation scrap.
Team news
Thomas Frank has three Brentford players out until after the World Cup, with centre-back Pontus Jansson, left-back Aaron Hickey and reserve goalkeeper Thomas Strakosha all expected to return shortly after Christmas.
However, there is an outside chance that defensive midfielder Christian Norgaard will return to the squad for the first time since August.
Wolves’ interim manager Steve Davis remains beset by injuries in his forward line.
Striker Sasa Kalajdzic is out for the season with an ACL tear, winger Chiquinho will only return for the final weeks of the season and fellow winger Pedro Neto will miss the World Cup with an ankle injury.
Centre-forward Raul Jimenez is aiming to return in time for the World Cup but is unlikely to get many minutes for Wolves beforehand, while defender Toti Gomes remains a significant doubt for this weekend’s match.
The stats
Wolves attempted to steady the ship last week by announcing that Davis’ interim spell as manager would last until 2023, so to immediately follow up with their heaviest defeat of the season is a major blow to morale.
Davis’ side are now on a run of five defeats and just one win — 1-0 at home to bottom side Nottingham Forest — in six games, with Wanderers conceding 14 goals and scoring just two in that time.
And his side are both the lowest scorers in the Premier League and have the worst away record, netting just five goals in 12 outings and collecting just one point from a possible 18 on the road.
Brentford have also been poor on the road, claiming just three points in six away trips, but they have the sixth-best home record in the Premier League, taking 11 points from six games and scoring 12 goals while conceding only six.
Prediction
Frank was understandably angry at his team’s performance last weekend but he can expect a reaction and a much better display back at the Gtech Community Stadium.
It is hard to pinpoint exactly why — with Frank unconvincingly dismissing it as random coincidence — but the Bees have looked a different team at home to on the road.
On their travels, Brentford are yet to win despite a relatively kind set of fixtures and have suffered a 5-1 thrashing at Newcastle and the 4-0 defeat at Aston Villa.
But in west London, Brentford have thrashed Manchester United 4-0, beaten Brighton 2-0 and held Chelsea to a 0-0 draw, as well as beating Leeds and drawing 1-1 against Everton.
Their only poor home display came in a 3-0 defeat to Arsenal.
Frank’s men can generally be trusted in front of their own fans — and even more so against a toothless Wolves side who look utterly devoid of confidence.
Brentford to win to nil at 9/4 via LiveScore Bet looks a great price.
