Match Preview: Fulham v Brentford

Brentford return to Premier League action on Monday evening (8pm kick-off) when they travel to Fulham for a west London derby in Gameweek 10.

The Bees make the short trip to Craven Cottage following a 4-3 win over Ipswich Town last weekend and defeating Sheffield Wednesday on penalties in the Carabao Cup fourth round on Tuesday.

Analysis, team news, match officials and more. Here's everything you need to know ahead of the game.

PRE-MATCH ANALYSIS

Richard Cole, Playmaker Stats: Fulham pose a big threat from balls into the box

Brentford face a difficult Monday night game at Craven Cottage against a Fulham team who have the potential to cause the Bees' backline some problems.

Marco Silva's team are 10th in the table, just a point behind Brentford, but they would have been higher if it wasn't for conceding a 94th-minute equaliser away to Everton last Saturday.

That's the third time the Cottagers have dropped points late on this season, having also shipped a 95th-minute equaliser to West Ham in September and an 86th-minute winner against Manchester United on the opening day of the season.

A team that often starts as fast as Brentford may want to keep a little extra in the tank on Monday.

The late kick-off is likely to test the Brentford backline with Ethan Pinnock and Ben Collins – if selected as Thomas Frank’s centre-back pairing again - needing to be wary of the threat of the opposition's crosses.

Fulham have had more accurate crosses (57) than any other team in the Premier League this season (Brentford are fourth with 48 for reference). And there are two likely sources of crosses that Brentford need to limit; Andreas Pereira and Antonee Robinson.

Pereira, who is a slight doubt after being substituted at the weekend, has contributed 60 crosses in the league this season with only Everton's Dwight McNeil (61) sending in more. The Brazilian is a big source of Fulham's creativity having made 26 key passes this campaign (behind only Arsenal’s Bukayo Saka, 27) and ranks fourth for shot-creating actions (45).

Meanwhile, Robinson has earned plaudits for his performances this season and the American has some impressive numbers. As well as being a threat from his balls into the box, Robinson will be looking to stifle the in-form Bryan Mbeumo.

Robinson has attempted 32 tackles this season (ranking him joint third in the league) and won 21 of those with Daniel Muñoz the one player to attempt more (23).

Mbeumo will certainly have opportunities to test his skills against a player who has stopped dribblers 17 times so far (Chelsea’s Moisés Caicedo is the only player to beat that by doing it on 21 occasions).

All those crosses of Fulham aren't just to ping it in the box and see what happens. They're often able to get shots away. Indeed, just three teams, Tottenham Hotspur, Arsenal, and Manchester City, average more shots per game (17.8).

Raúl Jiménez has four goals in his last six Premier League appearances and boasts an impressive goals per 90 minutes ratio of 0.60 – the same as Mohamed Salah.

When it gets to the latter stages of the game, Rodrigo Muniz is often deployed from the bench. The Brazilian scored as a substitute against City in early October and is keen to get involved even with limited minutes. In fact, only Erling Haaland averages more shots per 90 (2.78) than Muniz (1.85), with Jiménez ranking fourth (1.74).

Of course, if Muniz is causing problems late on against Brentford, the Bees will know that the Cottagers are also potentially vulnerable.

A game bookended by early and late goals seems a distinct possibility!

SCOUT REPORT

Dan Long, Sky Sports: Fulham enjoying best start to Premier League season in over a decade

In 2018/19, Fulham returned to the Premier League after four seasons away and were immediately relegated. In 2020/21, they got back to the top flight again and were immediately relegated. In 2022/23, they returned for a third time and it’s been so far, so good.

In Marco Silva’s first season in charge, they finished 10th – their highest finish in a decade – and last term, they finished 13th. It wasn’t quite as spectacular, but they got by. Finishing 21 points above the relegation zone and 16 below the top six is the definition of comfort in this division.

Some had feared they might not have the capability to do so following the sale of frontman Aleksandar Mitrović to Saudi Pro League side Al Hilal. The Serbian striker had been an integral part of the Cottagers’ squad for six seasons and established himself as the seventh-highest scorer in the club’s history with 111 goals.

But a reported fee of £50 million for a player then in the final year of his 20s was absolutely not to be sniffed at.

Rodrigo Muniz came to the fore as an eye-catching Mitrović replacement, with a run of eight goals in as many games throughout February and March.

Successive 5-0 home wins over Nottingham Forest and West Ham over a four-day period in December were memorable, too, as were victories over Manchester United, Arsenal and Tottenham.

There was also a run to the Carabao Cup semi-final for the first time ever, where they were beaten by eventual winners Liverpool.

"The season, as a whole, is definitely a successful season,” said Marco Silva after the final day win at relegated Luton.

"In terms of points, we have five less than last season but overall it has been a very good season for us. I had the feeling that we could go a bit higher."

The familiar fears they might struggle to compete returned after Tosin Adarabioyo left for west London neighbours Chelsea, Bobby De Cordova-Reid joined Leicester and star man João Palhinha finally made his protracted move to Bayern Munich for a reported fee in excess of £40 million.

But the Cottagers’ recruitment team helped them to avoid a major dip in morale off the pitch. They secured the return of Ryan Sessegnon on a free from Tottenham and brought Emile Smith Rowe in from Arsenal permanently, with Reiss Nelson joining on loan.

Centre-back Jorge Cuenca arrived from Villarreal, with Sander Berge and Joachim Andersen following. Any fears soon disintegrated.

Ahead of Gameweek 10, they sit slap-bang in the middle of the table after a reasonable start. They have played nine, won three, drawn three, lost three; scored 12 and conceded 12.

It was a late Joshua Zirkzee goal that got Manchester United out of jail on the opening day, while against both Man City and Aston Villa, Fulham scored first, but failed to hold onto their leads.

They edged in front against West Ham and, most recently, Everton, but were forced to settle for draws in both. It has been frustrating, but not too costly, thankfully for them.

In fact, the 12 points they have picked up already is their best return after the first 12 games in the Premier League since 2012/13, when they picked up 14, so the fact they feel somewhat disappointed can only be positive.

IN THE DUGOUT

Marco Silva

Marco Silva passed 13 years in management in September and has now taken charge of almost 500 matches in Portugal, Greece and the UK.

After a playing career as a right-back in his home country, the Portuguese was appointed director of football at Estoril in 2011, but was quickly thrust into his first role as leading man when the club endured an unfavourable start to the campaign and Vinicius Eutrópio was sacked.

Silva managed to turn the club’s fortunes around, winning the Liga de Honra – Portugal’s second tier - and cementing a return to the Primeira Liga after a seven-year exile.

In 2014, Silva signed a four-year deal at Sporting CP and went on to win the Taca de Portugal, but he lasted just days over a year in charge.

Shortly after the cup win, the club produced a 400-page document where they detailed the reasoning for his dismissal, with one section claiming his failure to wear a club suit during a match partly justified the decision.

A title-winning season at Olympiacos came next, before he took on a fire-fighting job at relegation-threatened Hull in January 2017. Silva galvanised a Tigers team that included Harry Maguire and Andy Robertson, but ultimately could not prevent the club from dropping back into the Championship and he resigned just under five months later.

That preceded time at Watford and Everton, before he joined Fulham in July 2021. He won the Championship title with the club in 2021/22, before guiding them to their first top half Premier League finish since 2011/12 in 2022/23.

He reached 150 games in charge in October and is currently the 10th longest serving manager in the top four divisions of English football.

THE GAMEPLAN

With Jack Kelly, freelance Fulham journalist

Jack Kelly, freelance Fulham journalist, explains how Marco Silva is likely to set up his side against Brentford on Monday evening.

"It will be a possession-based 4-2-3-1 or 4-3-3," confirmed Kelly. "They will be missing Saša Lukić, so Sander Berge will probably sit, with Smith Rowe floating as the No 8 and Andreas Pereira as the No 10. It is a pretty standard setup, with Iwobi on one side and either Traoré or Nelson on the other and then Raúl Jiménez up front.

"It will be a back four of Kenny Tete, Anderson, Calvin Bassey and Antonee Robinson, with Bernd Leno in goal. It is quite a solid team, with no real need to change it at the moment unless there are injuries or suspensions.

"Fulham’s home form has been very good this season - they have only lost one game - so Brentford should expect a fast start. I know Brentford are known for their fast starts this season, but Fulham have started games very well in the Premier League, scoring early against Newcastle and Aston Villa."

Last Premier starting XI v Everton (4-2-3-1): Leno; Tete, Diop, Bassey, Robinson; Pereira, Berge; Traoré, Smith Rowe, Iwobi; Jiménez

Read our full interview with Jack Kelly here

TEAM NEWS

Frank: Ajer could return for west London derby

Brentford head coach Thomas Frank is hopeful that Kristoffer Ajer will be available for selection when the Bees travel to Fulham on Monday night.

The defender missed the last two games - against Ipswich Town and Sheffield Wednesday - with a minor foot injury, but could return to action at Craven Cottage.

“Kristoffer Ajer is progressing well,” said Frank. “He has a big chance, and he has been in training."

Frank also confirmed that Christian Nørgaard is available for selection, having been rested for Tuesday night’s Carabao Cup fourth-round tie against Sheffield Wednesday.

Rico Henry (knee), Igor Thiago (knee) and Gustavo Nunes (back) remain sidelined, while Aaron Hickey (hamstring) and Josh Dasilva (knee) are the Bees’ longer-term absentees.

MATCH OFFICIALS

Attwell refereeing Bees for second time this term

Referee: Stuart Attwell

Assistants: Constantine Hatzidakis and Mat Wilkes

Fourth official: Tom Bramall

VAR: Paul Tierney

Stuart Attwell will be the man in the middle for a Brentford game for the second time this season on Monday evening, having also officiated the Bees' 2-0 loss at Liverpool in August.

The 42-year-old, who is also in charge of VAR for Saturday's meeting between Ipswich Town and Leicester City at Portman Road, will have the whistle in the Premier League for the fifth time in 2024/25.

In his four top-flight fixtures so far, he has handed out 18 yellow cards and one red card.

LAST MEETING

Brentford 0 Fulham 0 (Premier League, 4 May 2024)

Brentford made it five games unbeaten at Gtech Community Stadium after playing out a goalless draw against Fulham.

Bryan Mbeumo hit the crossbar in the first half for the Bees, while Raúl Jiménez blazed over the visitors' best chance at the other end.