Brentford will look to make it back-to-back Premier League wins on Saturday when they host London rivals Crystal Palace at the G-Tech Community Stadium.
The Bees smashed Fulham 3-0 at Craven Cottage to win the west London bragging rights last weekend. Prior to that, they played out an entertaining 2-2 draw with Tottenham. Thomas Frank will be keen to continue the strong start to the season and beat Crystal Palace, who head into this fixture off the back of a 1-0 home loss to 10-man Arsenal.
Martin Odegaard’s second-half penalty was the difference between Palace and Arsenal on Monday, as Roy Hodgson and Co. failed to build on their opening weekend’s 1-0 victory over newcomers Sheffield United.
With the bragging rights at stake, here are some of the key battles worth keeping an eye on Saturday.
#Bryan Mbeumo vs Tyrick Mitchell
Bryan Mbeumo and Yoane Wissa continued to deputise expertly in the absence of Ivan Toney, helping Brentford smash Fulham 3-0 last weekend. As far as Mbeumo is concerned, the Cameroon international has started the new season strongly with three goals in the opening two fixtures.
After scoring in the 2-2 draw with Spurs, he calmly stroked home a penalty off the post before tapping home from a couple of yards out to help Brentford beat Fulham. The forward has shown glimpses of his brilliance in the opening two fixtures, linking well with Yoane Wissa and Kevin Schade. And if the Cameroonian gets quality service from Brentford’s midfielders, he could be lethal in the box.
However, it would not be easy for Mbeumo as he will be up against one of the most talented full-backs in the Premier League in the form of Tyrick Mitchell. Having kept Bukayo Saka quiet for large periods of the game on Monday, Mitchell should be confident heading into this fixture to face one of the most in-form forwards in the division.
The 23-year-old will look to stop Mbeumo from scoring against Palace and add to his tally. It promises to be an exciting contest.
#Eberechi Eze vs Christian Norgaard
Eberechi Eze has shown signs of stepping up his game for Palace this season following Wilfried Zaha’s departure.
With Zaha gone and Michael Olise sidelined with injury, the England international is the creative glue of Roy Hodgson’s side. He is a talented young player and oozed quality against Arsenal at Selhurst Park recently.
That said, the onus of keeping Eze under check will be on Christian Norgaard. Having performed brightly in Brentford’s opening two games, the Dane is likely to start in his preferred No.6 role in midfield. He must bring all his experience and qualities into play to stop Eze from creating opportunities in the final third and making late runs into the box.
Odsonne Edouard vs Ethan Pinnock
Odsonne Edouard’s second-half strike was enough to give Palace a 1-0 win over Sheffield United during the opening weekend of the season. And although he failed to get himself on the score sheet against Arsenal on Monday, the 25-year-old looked lively and sharp every time Palace went on the counter-attack.
Edouard and Eze have shown signs of developing a solid understanding across the two games, and if the duo get on the same wavelength at the weekend, it could spell danger for Brentford. Marshalling Brentford’s defence will be Ethan Pinnock, whose defensive contributions against Fulham didn’t go unnoticed despite the attackers taking most of the plaudits.
If Pinnock can produce close to last weekend’s display, Edouard could find it very difficult to breach the hosts’ rearguard.