Premier League: Brentford Next for Upwardly Mobile Leeds

Leeds United vs Brentford

Leeds United will hope to continue their climb up the table when they host newly-promoted Brentford at Elland Road on Sunday.

Brentford and Leeds are meeting in the Premier League for the first time thanks to the Bees remarkable promotion last season. And so far, they have fared pretty well with decent Premier League 2021 results.

Thomas Frank’s side currently sits in 12^th place, though there have been signs recently that their bright start is beginning to fade. Meanwhile, after a successful return to top-flight football last season, the Whites started slowly but they are beginning to climb the table and are up to 15^th.

Leeds come into the game on the back of a 1-0 win over Crystal Palace while Brentford lost 2-0 away to Spurs on Thursday night, and I reckon the trends will continue with another victory for the Yorkshire side.

Talking Points

Raphinha return is so important to Leeds

The Premier League 2021 betting odds back a home win and one big reason is the return to fitness of winger Raphinha. He scored the injury-time winner for the Whites against Crystal Palace and he is proving once again that he is the team’s biggest goal threat.

The Brazilian has recently earned international recognition with the Selecao and as Leeds’ top scorer with six goals he’s attracting attention at the biggest clubs in Europe, notably Liverpool.

Raphinha does so much more than score goals. He’s an energetic, attack-minded player who will stretch any defence and make space for his teammates.

He’s a selfless provider as Patrick Bamford discovered last year. The centre-forward has been sidelined this term but he too could make an appearance against the Bees.

Leeds have been struggling with injuries and head coach Marcelo Bielsa will also be delighted to see the return of defencive midfielder Kalvin Phillips.

The Yorkshire Pirlo has been such a big player for the club over the past few seasons alongside skipper Liam Cooper who leads the club with passion.

Things are looking up for the Whites.

Busy Bees are happy to play high tempo

Brentford's Ivan Toney eyes a Premier League win against Leeds United — Brentford’s Ivan Toney and manager Thomas Frank celebrate after the match

A draw away to Newcastle ended a run of four consecutive defeats and then Brentford earned a 1-0 win at home to out-of-form Everton to steady the ship once again. But Thursday’s defeat to Spurs was a reminder that survival this season would be a great achievement.

However, Brentford won’t shy away from the challenge. They don’t have a collection of stars in their team but they play some attractive football with high pressing.

With four goals, Ivan Toney has made a good start to life in the top flight. He was a prolific striker for the Bees in their promotion season, scoring 33 goals in that campaign and he has now bagged 35 goals in 58 appearances.

Alongside Toney, 22-year-old French striker Bryan Mbeuno is a fan-favourite. He’s scored three goals this season but hit the woodwork an incredible seven times.

Defender Rico Henry is a quick-thinking and well-organised full-back, and he has plenty of skill in his locker. He’s also prepared to get forward and has scored two goals already this term.

And right wing-back Sergi Canos is good at both ends of the pitch too. He scored Brentford’s first-ever goal in the Premier League but he was unlucky to score in the wrong end against Tottenham when a headed clearance bounced off him and into the net.

Jamaican centre-back Ethan Pinnock has grown in stature since his transfer from Barnsley in 2019, while keeper Alvaro Fernandez had a busy night against Tottenham and he’s a decent stopper for sure.

But his footwork and distribution are sometimes shaky and Leeds strikers will press high when they have the Bees on the back foot.

Brentford are not here to make up the numbers and this collection of players will fight to the end. They are indeed a dangerous opponent.

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History

As two recently promoted clubs, this is their first Premier League encounter. However, the Bees have had the better of the recent head-to-heads, winning five of the last 14 meetings while Leeds have won three times and there have been six draws.

But Brentford have failed to win at Elland Road on their last five visits.

The last meeting in Yorkshire was a Championship clash back in 2019 and the Whites won 1-0 as Kyle Bartley headed home a Stuart Dallas corner to move Leeds up to fifth place.

Both teams have won two from the last six with Leeds also drawing and losing two while Brentford have drawn one and lost three.