Brentford take on West Ham United at London Stadium on Monday night, live on Sky Sports (8pm kick-off).
The Bees completed a league double over the Hammers last season, winning both games 2-0. Thomas Frank's side also recorded a 3-2 victory over West Ham at Gtech Community Stadium earlier this term.
Brentford lost 1-0 to Manchester City last time out, while West Ham's poor form continued with a 2-0 defeat at Nottingham Forest.
PRE-MATCH ANALYSIS
Alex Lawes, Playmaker Stats: Brentford's speed of attack can hurt Hammers
Despite Brentford losing four out of their last five games, they have come against Liverpool, Tottenham Hotspur and Manchester City (twice) in that time, and the west Londoners have shown real signs of competitiveness in all of those matches.
And, ahead of their London derby with West Ham United at the London Stadium on Monday, the Bees will be confident that they can exploit the Hammers’ poor form.
A tactical plan and style that has characterised Brentford’s time in the top flight has been their pragmatism and ability to be direct, naturally exploiting an area of the game that most teams in the Premier League do not come up against regularly.
West Ham have found it difficult to transition from defence to attack with much speed and effectiveness consistently so far this season - especially when playing at home. 45 per cent of the passes that they play when at home come in the middle third of the pitch, perhaps as a result of the abundance of central midfielders that David Moyes is having to fit into his starting XI.
In contrast, when on the road, Brentford only play 38 per cent of their passes in the middle third with an emphasis on getting forward as quickly as possible to exploit space.
Given that West Ham appear to be stuck between gameplans at the moment with a squad that lacks a clear identity and overarching tactical principle, there is likely going to be space on the counter for Brentford to exploit.
West Ham have scored just nine goals from open play at home this season, with Brentford managing seven from open play away from home. Given that, and the lack of form or impetus from the hosts, it could be a cagey affair, but that should well suit Brentford, who have a defensive resilience that means they are rarely blown away, combined with a consistent threat going forward.
In a game likely to be decided by a fine margin or even a set-piece, the return and form of Ivan Toney and his aerial threat could be crucial. The centre-forward is averaging 3.3 aerial duels won per game at the moment, with only the injured Ethan Pinnock managing more in the Brentford squad.
And Toney will look to pull on the likes of Kurt Zouma or potentially Nayef Ageurd who lose 3.2 aerial duels per game between them thus far this season.
SCOUT REPORT
West Ham could make more history despite rocky start to 2024
Things started to turn for West Ham United after their defeat to Brentford at the start of November.
David Moyes himself had called their fast start – which consisted of three wins and a draw in their first four - “incredibly satisfying” and things were looking pretty rosy after a difficult league campaign in 2022/23, before a run of five defeats in seven saw them slide pretty rapidly into mid-table.
The language changed after they gave away a 2-1 lead to lose 3-2 at the Gtech. “We’ve not dealt with things which, as a player, I would have been disgusted with myself for not being able to deal with them much better,” Moyes said.
“The first goal [Neal Maupay’s first since returning to Brentford on loan] is Keystone Cops, it really is.”
West Ham fans’ expectations have naturally been elevated since the European journey they have enjoyed over the past two seasons, but the boos that were heard after the 1-0 defeat to Everton in the game prior subsided when a thoroughly positive run followed until the end of 2023.
West Ham dropped only five of the next 24 points on offer and beat Arsenal, Manchester United and Tottenham as they climbed back to the top six almost as quickly as they had fallen away a few months earlier.
“It’s amazing for us to be in and around that at the moment,” Moyes commented. His side had already booked a place in the last 16 of the Europa League by this point as well, with success on the continent providing the distraction that proved to be so important last term.
In January, the Hammers were one of the few clubs to complete transfer deals of any kind. Pablo Fornals left for Real Betis after five seasons and more than 200 appearances, while Thilo Kehrer and Saïd Benrahma departed on loan deals until the end of the season to Monaco and Lyon respectively.
They also strengthened their midfield options by temporarily rescuing Kalvin Phillips from what has been a pretty miserable time at Manchester City. The 28-year-old has managed to retain his England place while on the books at the Etihad, but started just once in all competitions this term and played 31 times across the past two seasons since joining from Leeds.
It has not gone much better for him in east London, though. He gifted Bournemouth their equaliser on his debut and was benched for the return games against Arsenal and Manchester United, before two bookings inside three minutes against Nottingham Forest last time out ruled him out of the Brentford game with suspension.
His struggles pretty much sum up how things are going for the team, who once again find themselves traversing a rocky path going into the final three months of the season.
Including the FA Cup third-round exit at the hands of Bristol City, West Ham are without a win in eight games and just a fortnight ago, Arsenal got their revenge with a 6-0 win at the London Stadium – the Hammers’ heaviest home defeat in Premier League history.
Unsurprisingly, there have been renewed calls for Moyes’ head since, but he has not cowed to the apparent pressure. “Maybe there would be managers who excite them more, but the one sitting here wins more. We must not forget there were good times not so long ago,” he said after the aforementioned Forest defeat.
As Will Pugh, Sun Sport journalist and co-founder of the We Are West Ham podcast, tells us, all is not lost. There may be a divide in the fanbase over David Moyes’ future at the club, yet there is still so much to play for and this could still fathomably turn out to be one of the best seasons in the history of West Ham United.
IN THE DUGOUT
David Moyes
Like the majority of his managerial colleagues in the Premier League, David Moyes had a long and successful playing career before turning his hand to coaching.
He started at Celtic as a professional in 1980 - where he won the Scottish Premiership in 1981/82 - and went on to play for Cambridge United, Bristol City, Shrewsbury, Dunfermline Athletic, Hamilton and Preston.
He was part of the North End squad that won the Third Division in 1995/96 and he retired at the age of 35, having played his last game in February 1998.
By this point, he had been appointed Preston manager, a role for which he was well-equipped, having started taking his coaches badges in his early 20s.
Just over four years later, in March 2002, he was approached by Everton and soon swapped Division Two for the Premiership.
During his nine-year spell on Merseyside, Moyes brought a 16-year-old Wayne Rooney into the first team and into the eyes of the world and, from 2006/07 and 2012/13, steered the Toffees to seven straight top-eight finishes, as well as reaching the 2008/09 FA Cup final, which they lost 2-1 to Chelsea.
In the summer of 2013, he was given the unenviable task of replacing Sir Alex Ferguson and Manchester United, but lasted less than a year of the six-year deal he signed and was sacked in April 2014.
A year in La Liga with Real Sociedad followed, where he won only 12 of his 42 games in charge, before he returned to England with Sunderland. It was just eight victories from 43 matches there, with his spell ending in the Black Cats’ relegation after a decade in the top flight.
Moyes was handed a six-month deal to take over at West Ham in November 2017 and tasked with securing survival after the sacking of Slaven Bilić, which he did. However, his contract was not extended in the summer and he departed the London Stadium after 31 games and a 29 per cent win ratio.
The Scot returned to east London in December 2019 and has been in charge ever since, winning the Europa Conference League last season.
The 60-year-old is one of a select group of managers who have reached 1,000 games in management and one of an even smaller group to still be adding to their tally.
THE GAMEPLAN
Will Pugh, Sun Sport journalist and co-founder of the We Are West Ham podcast
Will Pugh, Sun Sport journalist and co-founder of the We Are West Ham podcast, explains how David Moyes is likely to set up his side at London Stadium:
“There is huge pressure on him to take the game to Brentford, but he is no doubt aware that will likely play into Brentford’s hands, given how well they did at Manchester City.
“Kalvin Phillips is suspended, so it will be Edson Álvarez and Tomáš Souček and then James Ward-Prowse or Paquetá. He may stick with Jarrod Bowen up front, but I imagine he will give Michail Antonio another shot.
“Alphonse Areola will be in goal and I imagine he will give Konstantinos Mavropanos another chance, probably instead of Kurt Zouma or Nayef Aguerd. Vladimír Coufal will be at right-back and Emerson left-back, providing he is fit.”
Read the full interview with Will Pugh here
TEAM NEWS
Frank issues injury update ahead of London derby
Brentford head coach Thomas Frank has issued an update on his squad ahead of the trip to West Ham United.
When asked about the current state of his side ahead of the London derby, Frank stated: “Nothing has changed from the Manchester City game, everyone from that game is available again, so that's good.
“There’s no big progress with [Kevin Schade and Aaron Hickey]. The only two that are definitely out for the season are Rico Henry and Josh Dasilva; Josh had a very successful surgery two days ago and he’s good.”
Frank added: “I don't have an exact timeframe on Schade, but Bryan is progressing and that's a shorter one, hopefully after the international break.
“Hickey’s setback is in relation to his hamstring.”
MATCH OFFICIALS
Hooper the man in the middle at London Stadium
Referee: Simon Hooper
Assistants: Adrian Holmes and Simon Long
Fourth official: Tony Harrington
Delegate: Stephen Palmer
Video assistant referee: Michael Oliver
Additional video assistant referee: Constantine Hatzidakis
Experienced Wiltshire referee Simon Hooper, who tried to make it as a professional footballer in his youth, has taken charge of 28 Brentford games as both he and the Bees have worked their way up the divisions.
Hooper's first Brentford game came in October 2008 at Aldershot in League Two before seven Sky Bet League One assignments from 2009 to 2013 followed.
In the Sky Bet Championship, he was the man in charge for the Bees’ unforgettable 4-1 victory over Fulham at Craven Cottage in April 2015 and also refereed the 1-0 win at home to Queens Park Rangers in October that same year.
Hooper has refereed Brentford's 2-0 victories over Chelsea and Wolverhampton Wanderers this season.
LAST MEETING
Brentford 3 West Ham United 2 (Premier League, 2024)
Brentford came from behind to earn a third-straight Premier League victory, as they beat West Ham United 3-2 in another London derby triumph.
Neal Maupay opened the scoring in the first half at Gtech Community Stadium, heading home his first goal since returning to the club in the summer transfer window, before a sensational acrobatic effort from Mohammed Kudus and a close-range strike from Jarrod Bowen put the visitors ahead.
But the Bees ended the game on top thanks to an own goal from Konstantinos Mavropanos and Nathan Collins' thumping header.