Preview: Brentford vs Bournemouth – prediction, team news, line-ups | OneFootball

Gtech Community Stadium is the venue as Brentford and Bournemouth lock horns in an intriguing Premier League match-up on Saturday.

As envisaged in our Brentford 2023/24 preview, last season’s ninth-place finish was no fluke, with Thomas Frank’s side establishing themselves as regular mid-table tenants at the start of the new campaign.

Even without their suspended talisman, Ivan Toney, the Bees have proved a formidable opponent, as evidenced by a 3-0 win at Fulham, sandwiched by a pair of scoring draws against Tottenham Hotspur and Crystal Palace.

Fatigue could pose a problem for Brentford coming into this matchday following a nerve-shredding penalty shoot-out victory over lower-league Newport County in midweek League Cup action.

Unlike their hosts, Bournemouth settled their League Cup round two tie in regulation time, overcoming a 1-0 half-time deficit to beat Championship underachievers Swansea City 3-2 on Tuesday.

Ryan Christie’s stoppage-time winner fired new boss Andoni Iraola to his first competitive triumph as the Cherries manager, offering the Spaniard a glimmer of light at the end of the tunnel.

Despite holding West Ham United to a 1-1 opening-day draw at the Vitality Stadium, it’s mostly been doom and gloom for the Dorset outfit in the Premier League this term.

After surrendering an early lead in a 3-1 defeat at Liverpool on their first road trip under Iraola, Bournemouth conceded on either side of half-time in a disheartening 2-0 home loss to Tottenham last time out.

With the international break waiting around the corner, this is the visitors’ last chance to prove us right for backing them for a mid-table fight in our Bournemouth 2023/24 preview.

Match Preview

Teaching his side how to hold onto the lead is one of Frank’s priorities, with Brentford relinquishing a one-goal cushion in both Premier League stalemates this season.

Keeping Bournemouth winless would see the Bees start a new league campaign unbeaten in their first four matches for only the third time since 2009/10.

Optimism should be at an all-time high at the Gtech Community Stadium, where Brentford have only suffered three defeats in their last 26 Premier League outings (W13, D10).

Bournemouth’s visit also bodes well, considering the Bees have emerged victorious in their last four league encounters on home turf, including a 2-0 triumph in this corresponding fixture in January.

Gtech Community Stadium has proved a fortress for out-of-sorts Bournemouth. They have only managed one victory on their last 15 visits to this venue (D4, L10).

That’s an ominous sign for the Cherries as they bid to avoid starting a new league campaign on a four-game winless run for only the second time since 2012/13.

It gets worse for Iraola’s troops. They haven’t won any of their last seven Premier League outings (D1, L6), failing to get on the scoresheet on four occasions.

An underwhelming record of seven of their previous 36 top-flight trips highlights Bournemouth’s well-documented travel sickness (D3, L26), casting further doubts on their prospects in London.

Team News

In addition to long-term absentee Toney, Brentford head into this fixture without Josh Dasilva and Shandon Baptiste, who are struggling with thigh and shoulder injuries.

Bournemouth are still without summer addition Tyler Adams, Ryan Fredericks, Marcus Tavernier, Alex Scott and Adam Smith, who are all in the treatment room.

Brentford potential starting line-up:

(4-3-3): Mark Flekken; Aaron Hickey, Nathan Collins, Ethan Pinnock, Rico Henry; Christian Norgaard, Vitaly Janelt, Mathias Jensen; Bryan Mbeumo, Yoanne Wissa, Kevin Schade.

Bournemouth potential starting line-up:

(4-2-3-1): Neto; Max Aarons, Illya Zabarnyi, Lloyd Kelly, Milos Kerkez; Lewis Cook, Philip Billing; David Brooks, Ryan Christie, Antonie Semenyo; Dominic Solanke.

We Say: Brentford 2-1 Bournemouth

All signs point to another home success for Brentford, but we still expect Bournemouth to make things difficult for Frank’s side.