A Glance As one of the Premier League’s most successful teams, Aston Villa will visit Brentford on Sunday.
The club led by Unai Emery has won four of its last five league games, including decisive victories over Manchester City, Tottenham Hotspur, and Arsenal.
They will, meanwhile, be trying to improve their consistency away from Villa Park after going on the road this season with three victories, two draws, and three losses.
Although Brentford started the Premier League season strongly, they have already dropped four of their last five league games.
Last time out, Sheffield United defeated Thomas Frank’s team 1-0 at Bramall Lane.
In their eight league home games thus far, the Bees have amassed 12 points.
Notable Statistics
Only one of Brentford’s last ten league games against Aston Villa has resulted in a loss, that coming in the Premier League last season at Villa Park (W4, D5).
Since winning 2-1 in an FA Cup fourth-round replay in February 1953, Aston Villa has lost five of their road games against Brentford across all competitions. Their last league away victory over the Bees was in the first division in February 1947.
As many losses as they had in their previous eighteen games, the Bees have dropped their last five league games.
Aston Villa is second only to Manchester City in the Premier League with 24 victories and 78 points in 2023. Villa will break the club record for most wins in a calendar year if they win their 25th game in the top division.
With 16 games played, Brentford has 19 points, one less than they had at this time in each of their previous two Premier League campaigns.
Villa has never finished a season with more points than their current total of 35 after 16 games in the top flight—that was the case in 1980–81, the year they last won the title.
The Bees have won six of their last seven Premier League games at home and four away, all in London.
With 11 wins in a row when leading, the Villans are the only club in the Premier League to have not given up a point while leading this year.
From their six league games this season against teams presently in the top eight, Brentford’s only point came from a 2-2 home draw against Spurs on the opening weekend.
Under Unai Emery, Villa has won all six of its league games in London, and they are hoping to win three straight top flight titles in the city for the first time since early 1990.
Despite making eight Premier League games against Aston Villa, Neal Maupay has never managed to score. Nine games without a goal against English top tier opponents are a record for him.
With 20 Premier League goals in 2023, Ollie Watkins is one goal short of Dwight Yorke’s club record for a calendar year, which was set in 1996.
The Final Consultation
In April, Aston Villa rallied to draw 1-1 with Brentford at the Gtech Community Stadium.
Up until Ivan Toney’s score 65 minutes in, the cagey contest was goalless. Bryan Mbuemo had crossed the ball.
But with three minutes remaining, Douglas Luiz tied the score for the visitors, who were desperate not to be defeated.
Group News
Lucas Digne and Douglas Luiz, both on suspension, will not be available for Aston Villa.
While Bertrand Traore and Robin Olsen are not playing, Youri Tielemans and Leon Bailey will be evaluated before the trip.
The loss of leading scorer Bryan Mbeumo for three months has been a huge setback for Brentford.
The Bees have a long list of injured players, including Rico Henry, Aaron Hickey, Kevin Schade, Kristoffer Ajer, and Mathias Jensen. Ivan Toney is still suspended.
The Head
“Brentford is a team that has excellent players, an excellent coach, and they are developing as a club. They really are fiercely competitive. They played against us in the Conference League the previous year and were fairly close to us. We succeeded, and although they are now somewhat hindered by injured players—important players—they remain fiercely competitive. They will play at the same tempo, which means that their tactics will be fiercely competitive and intense. They feel strong and surrounded by fans at home. On Sunday, we’re going to play them and we’re going to aim to be better than we were in Bournemouth, more competitive, more successful.
