Match Prediction
Erik ten Hag was terribly mistaken if he thought a change of competitors would provide some much-needed relief. Manchester United lost their fifth defeat in seven matches on Tuesday, as Galatasaray twice came from behind to earn a famous 3-2 UEFA Champions League victory at Old Trafford, increasing the pressure on Ten Hag ahead of Brentford’s visit to Old Trafford on Saturday.
In addition to being bottom of their Champions League group with no points, United enters Saturday’s encounter 10th in the Premier League league, nine points behind the leaders. They have lost six of their ten games in all competitions this season, surrendering 18 goals, the most they have conceded at this stage of a season since 1966-67 (20).
Individual errors cost United in midweek, rendering Rasmus Hjlund’s brace meaningless. Wilfried Zaha scored against his previous club for the fourth match thanks to Diogo Dalot’s poor defending, while André Onana’s errant pass resulted in Casemiro receiving a second card. After making a clearance, stand-in left-back Sofyan Amrabat took a sluggish stride forward, allowing Mauro Icardi to run through and score the winner.
It’s safe to argue that Old Trafford isn’t now feared by visiting teams. United have lost their last two Premier League home games against Brighton & Hove Albion and Crystal Palace, after winning 25 and drawing seven of their previous 34 home games in the tournament. The last time they lost three consecutive home league games was in February 1979.
Ten Hag will be hoping for good news on the injury front as he attempts to avoid another home disgrace. Sergio Reguilón will be evaluated while defenders Aaron Wan-Bissaka, Luke Shaw, and Lisandro Martnez – who has suffered a setback in his recovery from a metatarsal injury – are all sidelined for the foreseeable future. Jadon Sancho is still on the sidelines, despite speculations that he may leave in the near future.
Marcus Rashford must improve in attack for Manchester United. He scored 17 Premier League goals from 15.8 anticipated goals (xG) previous season, but only one from 2.7 xG this season. This season, he is second only to Manchester City’s Erling Haaland in total shots and direct shot involvements in the Premier League, but he has been lacking in confidence recently. His previous four Premier League goals, though, have all come against London-based clubs, providing some hope.
Brentford have had a disappointing start to the season, winning only one of nine games in all competitions (five draws and three defeats). They have gone seven games without a win since beating Fulham in August, however this includes a penalty shootout victory at Newport.
Marcus Rashford must improve in attack for Manchester United. He scored 17 Premier League goals from 15.8 anticipated goals (xG) previous season, but only one from 2.7 xG this season. This season, he is second only to Manchester City’s Erling Haaland in total shots and direct shot involvements in the Premier League, but he has been lacking in confidence recently. His previous four Premier League goals, though, have all come against London-based clubs, providing some hope.
Brentford have had a disappointing start to the season, winning only one of nine games in all competitions (five draws and three defeats). They have gone seven games without a win since beating Fulham in August, however this includes a penalty shootout victory at Newport.
After that game, Frank felt cheated when Brentford were refused a penalty despite Yoane Wissa seeming to be fouled by Forest goalkeeper Matt Turner. Wissa has appeared in all 71 of Brentford’s Premier League games this season, while strike partner Bryan Mbeumo has appeared in 64 of them. The pair are second and fourth in the league for the longest current streaks without missing a top-flight match, respectively.
Fellow forward Ivan Toney scored in a closed-doors friendly against Como this week, although he is still suspended until January after breaking the Football Association’s betting rules. Brentford’s attacking options were further weakened by the news last week that Kevin Schade will be out for several months due to an adductor injury.
Rico Henry will miss the rest of the season, and Ben Mee will not return until after the international break. Brentford have stayed sturdy in the absence of the defender, with just Man City (3.35), Chelsea (4.62), and Arsenal (5.06) allowing less than their 5.51 xG against from open play this season.
Manchester United takes on Brentford. Head-to-Head
Manchester United have won three of their four Premier League games with Brentford, with the lone defeat being a stunning 4-0 thrashing in Ten Hag’s first away game in charge last August.
The Red Devils have won both of their home Premier League matches against Brentford without conceding; 3-0 in 2021-22 and 1-0 in April.
Brentford have lost their past five road games against United in all competitions, and Old Trafford has not been kind to them. Their last victory at Old Trafford was a 3-1 victory in February 1937.
United, on the other hand, has lost all three Premier League games against London clubs this season, to Tottenham Hotspur, Arsenal, and Crystal Palace.
They have not lost four consecutive league games against London clubs since September 1986, and they last lost four games against London clubs in a single season in 2006-07.
Recent Form
Manchester United have won two of their four Premier League home games this season, with unconvincing victory over Wolves and Forest preceding defeats to Brighton and Palace.
The Red Devils have conceded first in each of their last three league games at Old Trafford, and they have only conceded first in four consecutive home league games twice before – between February and March 2014 and July and September 2020.
However, United’s proclivity to start slowly may not be music to Brentford’s ears. This season, the Bees have only won one of five Premier League games in which they have scored first, drawing with Tottenham, Palace, Bournemouth, and Forest.
Power Rankings in pta
The Opta Power Rankings are a global team ranking system that awards an ability score to over 13,000 domestic football teams on a scale of zero to 100, with zero being the worst-ranked team in the world and 100 being the greatest.
Here is the Opta Power Ranking for both teams ahead of kickoff this weekend.
Man United are favorites tonight, according to the Opta supercomputer, with the under-fire hosts claiming three points in 45.3% of 10,000 match simulations prior to kickoff.
However, another dismal home result is not out of the question. Brentford is given a 26.6% chance of winning, with 28.1% of simulations ending level.
The poor form of Manchester United has had a significant impact on the supercomputer’s season projections. Before the first ball was kicked, they were assigned a 63.2% chance of finishing in the top four and qualifying for the Champions League, but it has already reduced to as low as 4%.
Brentford are not considered to be in significant danger yet, with only a 1% probability of relegation, and their most likely final position is regarded to be 12th, with a 16.8% chance of finishing there.
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