Match Preview: Brentford v Aston Villa | OneFootball

Keith Andrews takes charge of his first competitive Brentford game at Gtech Community Stadium on Saturday (3pm kick-off BST), with Aston Villa the visitors to TW8.

The Bees were beaten 3-1 by Nottingham Forest on the opening weekend of the Premier League season, while Villa drew 0-0 with Newcastle United.

Analysis, team news, match officials and more. Here's everything you need to know before kick-off.

Pre-match Analysis

Stephen Gillett, Playmaker Stats: Brentford must be wary of returning Watkins

Brentford welcome Ollie Watkins to Gtech Community Stadium for the fourth time since he left the Bees back in 2020.

In seven Premier League games for Aston Villa against the Bees, Watkins has seven goal involvements (six goals and an assist) and Brentford fans will hope his purple patch against them comes to an abrupt end when both sides meet this Saturday in search of their first victories of the fledgling 2025/26 season.

Watkins plundered 26 goals for the Bees as they fell at the final hurdle in the 2019/20 season, the Exeter City academy graduate leaving west London on the back of an agonising 2-1 defeat to Fulham in the Championship play-off final.

However, the Bees and Watkins have both gone from strength to strength since their shared Wembley heartbreak.

In fact, the forward's prolific form for Aston Villa is illustrated by the fact that only Liverpool's Mohamed Salah (112) and Man City's Erling Haaland (87) have scored more top-flight goals than the 29-year-old (75) since he made his Premier League debut in September 2021.

It was Watkins' low drive that separated the two sides, as the Villans recorded a 1-0 win in west London in March, and Brentford head coach Keith Andrews will be aware of the all-round threat posed at the sharp end of the pitch by the Bees' old boy.

Given his own expertise in the area, the Midlanders' reputation as one of the savviest set-piece teams in the top tier will not have escaped Andrews' attention.

Under the watchful eye of their dead-ball specialist Austin MacPhee, the Villans ranked second in the Premier League for set-pieces scored (16) last season, and were also third for fewest goals conceded (seven) from corners, free-kicks and throw-ins.

Quarter-finalists in last season's Champions League, Villa have made huge strides since Unai Emery took the reins in 2022, and the Villans' home form has been exceptional.

Last season, Villa lost only a single game on their patch (their opening game of the 2024/25 campaign to Arsenal) and Villa Park is currently among the most formidable fortresses in Europe.

A goalless draw against Newcastle in their Premier League opener stretched Villa’s unbeaten league run at home to 19 games. Yet for all their dominance at home, Emery will want his side’s away form to now click - after Villa lost more top-flight games (nine) than they won (eight) last term.

If Villa are to pick up points this Saturday, they will in all likelihood have to attack with more pace and penetration than they did in their stalemate with the Magpies last weekend.

Currently bottom of the xG charts after Gameweek One of the Premier League season, Villa took only three shots and created just 0.35 xG against Eddie Howe's men - although Ezri Konsa's second-half dismissal clearly altered the complexion of the game.

Given the lack of spark in their draw against Newcastle, Villa fans will be keen to see new signing Evann Guessand involved at some point.

The powerful and pacy forward ranked 12th in Ligue 1 for successful dribbles last season, averaging 1.7 per 90 minutes, and 20 league goal involvements (12 goals and eight assists) in total for Nice suggest the 24-year-old is ready to make an immediate impact for the Villans - much like Morgan Rogers has made since signing from Middlesbrough back in early 2024.

If Brentford can handle the familiar menace of Watkins and the fresh spark of Guessand, they’ll believe Saturday can mark a turning point after their opening day defeat to Nottingham Forest.

Scout Report

Dan Long, Sky Sports: There is every reason to believe Aston Villa’s upward trajectory will continue

For the third season in succession, Aston Villa secured a top-seven finish in 2024/25.

Granted, the year before will live longer in the memory, given they finished fourth for the first time since 1995/96 and secured a place in the Champions League for the very first time.

That was special, but this illustrated consistency and an ability to manage the added load European competition brings.

As well as runs to the FA Cup semi-final and Champions League quarter-final, Villa recorded their third-highest points tally (66), third-highest number of goals scored (58) and third-highest number of wins (19). No mean feat, considering this is a club that has missed just three Premier League seasons in history.

Villa did miss out on a return to the Champions League on the very final day of last term, though. Morgan Rogers' opener against Manchester United was controversially ruled out for offside and later, Amad Diallo and Christian Eriksen scored to seal a 2-0 win for Ruben Amorim's side.

Only goal difference denied them fifth place, which was taken by Newcastle United. Regardless, Unai Emery said afterwards his side "did not deserve more than the result we have."

Though there was plenty of movement in the transfer window last summer, there is a strong squad in place at Villa Park, and one that is capable of challenging at the top end of the table again this term.

Academy products Kaine Kesler-Hayden and Filip Marschall were sold earlier this summer, before Jacob Ramsey joined Newcastle. Philippe Coutinho, Kortney Hause and Robin Olsen were among those released.

The standout signing, meanwhile, has been that of striker Evann Guessand from Nice. If Ollie Watkins does make a long-rumoured exit this summer, the Ivory Coast international is a more than able replacement. If he does not, an interesting battle for the no.9 shirt will ensue.

The summer transfer window does not shut for a little while yet so players could still come and go, but there is no denying Villa possess enviable depth in their squad.

And so it will come as no surprise Emery's men are priced as short as 5/4 to finish in the top six, 4/1 to finish in the top four, and are 11/1 to finish in the top two.

They may well have a chance to go deep in the Europa League, too. English clubs have won four of the last nine European trophies available since the start of 2022/23, which will give Villa a source of inspiration.

The disappointment of narrowly missing out on the Champions League could yet serve as extra fuel, sharpening their focus for another tilt at the top four while embracing the opportunity to lift a rare piece of silverware.

There is every reason to believe Villa’s upward trajectory will continue - and another special season may be just around the corner.

In the Dugout

Unai Emery

Having taken charge of more than 1,000 matches over the last 21 years, Unai Emery is one of the most experienced managers currently working in the Premier League.

After a career as a midfielder, mostly playing in the second tier of Spanish football, the Spaniard had a pretty quick transition into management, having suffered a serious knee injury in his early 30s.

He helped the now-defunct Lorca Deportiva to promotion in 2004/05 and got Almería into La Liga for the first time in 2006/07, before an incredible eighth-place finish the following campaign.

In 2008, his exploits saw him move on to Valencia, whom he guided to three straight third-place finishes from 2010 to 2012, before a forgettable six-month spell in Russia with Spartak Moscow.

He returned to Spain in January 2013 and guided Sevilla to three-successive Europa League titles.

Two years and seven trophies with Paris Saint-Germain followed, with Emery then trusted by the Arsenal board to become the successor to Arsène Wenger, which was, to an extent, a poisoned chalice.

The Europa League king guided the Gunners to the final in 2019, where they were beaten by Chelsea in Baku, Azerbaijan, but he was unable to help them finish higher than fifth for the first time in four seasons.

He was dismissed after 18 months in November 2019 and appointed by Villarreal in July 2020, with - you’ve guessed it - a fourth Europa League triumph following 10 months later, by way of a penalty shoot-out win over Manchester United in Gdańsk, Poland.

Emery turned down an approach by Newcastle United in November 2021, but came back to England to replace Steven Gerrard at Villa Park in October 2022.

The 53-year-old - who is under contract until the summer of 2029 - is Villa’s longest-serving manager since Martin O’Neill, who left after four years in August 2010.

The Gameplan

With Patrick Rowe, football journalist at Sky Sports

Patrick Rowe, football journalist at Sky Sports, has explained how manager Unai Emery is likely to set up his Aston Villa side for Saturday’s game against Brentford in the Premier League:

"Unai Emery has been tampering with his squad in pre-season, with five at the back trialled at times. However, I expect the usual 4-4-2 for this game," said Rowe.

"One player will be playing off Ollie Watkins up front, but these days, your guess is as good as mine as to who that will be!

"It could be Youri Tielemans, John McGinn, Morgan Rogers, Donyell Malen or even Emiliano Buendía.

"The latter seems to have worked his ways back into Emery’s plans at Villa after a loan spell at Bayer Leverkusen last season."

Last time out v Newcastle United (4-2-3-1): Bizot; Cash, Konsa, Mings, Digne; Kamara, Onana; McGinn, Tielemans, Rogers; Watkins

Read our full interview with Patrick Rowe here

Match Officials

Harrington the man in the middle at Gtech Community Stadium

Referee: Tony Harrington

Assistants: Mat Wilkes and Mark Scholes

Fourth official: Michael Oliver

VAR: Tim Wood

Tony Harrington refereed 27 games last season, showing 115 yellow cards and five reds.

Harrington officiated Brentford's 2-1 win at Crystal Palace in January, and the 4-0 victory at Leicester City the following month.

Classic Clash

Aston Villa 3 Brentford 3 (Premier League, 6 April 2024)

Brentford and Aston Villa played out a pulsating 3-3 draw at Villa Park in April 2024.

The Bees trailed by two goals shortly after half-time but produced a stunning nine-minute turnaround to flip the game on its head and take a 3-2 lead before Ollie Watkins’ second of the game meant the spoils were shared.

Goals from Zanka, Bryan Mbeumo and Yoane Wissa had cancelled out Watkins’ first-half header and Morgan Rogers’ strike one minute after the restart, but it was the former who headed home another as the sides had to settle for a point apiece in the Midlands.