Brentford vs Manchester United

Brentford and Manchester United are set to trade tackles in a high-stakes Premier League showdown at the Gtech Community Stadium.

Brentford boss Thomas Frank has had a fortnight to rally his troops after an unremarkable six-game winless run (D1, L5) plunged his side into the Premier League relegation fight. A dismal 2-1 defeat to second-from-bottom Burnley on the stroke of March’s international break saw Brentford spend the pause only five points clear of 18th-placed Nottingham Forest, intensifying the pressure on Frank. The under-fire manager’s first task is to galvanize Brentford’s home form after overseeing just one win in the last six league games at the Gtech Community Stadium (D1, L4). Despite dismantling Manchester United 4-0 in their most recent home encounter, the Bees have notoriously struggled against this opposition, going winless in nine of their last ten H2Hs (D1, L8), including a 2-1 defeat in October’s reverse fixture.

In the meantime, Manchester United headed into the break in high spirits after beating fierce rivals Liverpool 4-3 in the FA Cup quarter-finals. Erik ten Hag’s men are still in contention for a top-five finish in the Premier League as they trail fifth-placed Tottenham by six points following a 2-0 home win against Everton. But as the only side in the top seven to have lost 10+ league matches this season (11), United can’t afford to rest on their laurels. The Red Devils succumbed to a 3-1 defeat at Manchester City on their last Premier League travel, relinquishing a three-game winning league streak on the road. Keen to return to winning ways in away league action, Man Utd can draw confidence from scoring in 14 consecutive matches, even though they’ve bagged the fewest goals among sides starting the round in the top 13 of the Premier League table (39).