Brentford meet Crystal Palace in an August Bank Holiday London derby at Gtech Community Stadium.
With Brighton and Manchester City not in action until later in the weekend, Brentford know that victory coupled with a loss for Arsenal would lift the Bees up to the summit for at least a few hours.
Team News
Ben Mee is still ruled out for Brentford after he missed their win at Fulham as he continues his recovery from a calf injury.
Josh Dasilva (hamstring) and Shandon Baptiste (shoulder) won’t be available whilst Ivan Toney (suspension) remains absent.
Palace have no fresh injury concerns to report after their defeat against Arsenal, as Will Hughes (knee), Matheus Franca (back) and Michael Olise (hamstring) remain absent.
When is Kick-Off?
Brentford welcome Palace to Gtech Community Stadium in a 3pm BST kick-off on Saturday 26 August, untelevised in the UK.
Stat Attack
- Brentford have drawn all four of their Premier League meetings against Crystal Palace (D4).
- Palace have drawn their two previous Premier League visits to Brentford (D2), having been held to a 0-0 draw in February 2022 then a 1-1 draw in February 2023.
- Brentford conceded first in both meetings last season but fought back to draw 1-1 (D2).
- Bryan Mbeumo has been involved in eight of Brentford’s last 11 league goals, having scored six goals and provided two assists.
- Palace are yet to receive a single booking for any of their players this season.
Prediction
Brentford’s momentum without Toney just seems to roll on following a ruthless win at Fulham, where their defence were rock solid whilst their attacking performance had a confident energy about it, which is a slight surprise because I did expect Toney’s absence to bite them up front.
Palace meanwhile will be disappointed to lose against Arsenal on Monday evening because they matched the Gunners across the pitch, yet were undone by a clumsy foul from goalkeeper, Sam Johnstone, but they have already displayed a solid all-round game.
It is that solidness which could well be their best weapon here because they will need to be astute defensively to frustrate Brentford, who are on a competitive roll presently but this game does feel like it could be super tight.
Prediction: Brentford 1-0 Crystal Palace
Result: Brentford 1-1 Crystal Palace