AFC Bournemouth
AFC Bournemouth will be hoping to maintain their impressive recent record when they face in-form Championship rivals Brentford on Wednesday (5.30pm kick-off).
The Cherries will be looking to extend their five-match unbeaten run when they pay their first visit to the Brentford Community Stadium which opened at the start of this season.
A 3-2 victory at Cardiff on Boxing Day saw Thomas Frank’s team make it 15 games unbeaten as Sergi Canos’s hat-trick helped them come from behind to take the points.
Brentford arrived in south Wales brimming with confidence following their midweek triumph over Newcastle United in the quarter-final of the Carabao Cup.
Josh Da Silva’s goal set up a semi-final against Tottenham as the Bees claimed a fourth Premier League scalp, the Magpies suffering the same fate as Southampton, West Brom and Fulham.
Their unbeaten run includes seven wins in the Championship, while they have lost just once on home soil, going down 4-2 against Preston in early October.
Fuelled by 16-goal leading marksman Ivan Toney, signed from Peterborough, the Bees will be hoping to go one better this season having lost out to Fulham in the Championship play-off final in August.
Ahead of the clash, afcb.co.uk caught up with Phil Parry who covers the fortunes of Brentford for BBC London Sport.
BRENTFORD IN PROFILE
Head coach: Thomas Frank (October 2018)
Club captain: Pontus Jansson
Last game: Cardiff City 2-3 Brentford (Championship)
Leading goalscorer 2020/21: Ivan Toney (16 in Championship)
League position: Fourth
Past six league results: DDWDWW
afcb.co.uk: What’s been the formula for Brentford’s 15-match unbeaten run?
PP: I think it’s a combination of a solid defensive unit which gives them a great platform to push forward and create the opportunities to get the goals they need.
Even though there have been changes to the backline, the manoeuvrability they have has been good. Ethan Pinnock has been a star over the past 18 months, Pontus Jansson has also played a key role and Charlie Goode has been an excellent addition.
They have been without Christian Norgaard as a sitting midfielder but Vitaly Janelt has adapted pretty effectively to English football and the Championship so that gives the bedrock.
David Raya, who shared the golden glove last season, has been excellent between the sticks and you can’t overlook the form of Ivan Toney.
If he’s not scoring goals, he’s certainly making a nuisance of himself for opposition defences which then allows other players to chip in with goals which has been the case in recent games.
Confidence has grown as a result of the cup run. Beating four Premier League teams has given them momentum which has taken them a long way.
afcb.co.uk: Has Thomas Frank (pictured above) changed much this season?
PP: Ivan Toney’s arrival has allowed them to use the frontman in a different fashion because he plays a different way to Ollie Watkins and Said Benrahma.
I don’t think he’s changed massively and the set-up and the way he wants them to play is still fairly similar.
They have good adaptability so they can pass and move through midfield but they’ve also got the option of Ivan who’s a very strong hold-up player. They can use him as an early ball and an out-ball.
On the whole, there have been tweaks here and there but the structure is fairly stable.
Even though they lost two big players who scored 40-plus goals between them last season, they’ve been able to adapt to that and the players that have come in have fitted into the system.
Sergi Canos missed most of last season and is starting to emerge again with the talent we know he’s got.
Generally, they didn’t make too many changes. One or two new faces have come in and they have slotted them in rather than made wholesale changes.
The biggest adaptation was to use Ivan and get the most out of him and, so far, that’s been pretty effective.
afcb.co.uk: Give us your assessment of Ivan Toney (pictured above)?
PP: I’ve been very impressed. I’ve been impressed by his work ethos and work ethic. I’ve been impressed by the fact he is naturally a good finisher but he will occupy defenders as well.
He’s a good age and is using this as a great opportunity. He had a big move from Northampton to Newcastle but didn’t really get an opportunity at Newcastle and went out on loan.
He found a bit of solace and a bit of love at Peterborough where he started finding the goals.
It was always going to be interesting to see how he would do following his move to Brentford. I saw his first game against Wycombe in the Carabao Cup and he looked a little rusty, as a lot of players do in their first game.
From then, he’s kicked on. It’s like with so many good strikers, it’s not just his goals. He looks to bring in other players as well, he’s not selfish.
He makes it difficult for opposing defenders and therefore that creates opportunities and spaces for others.
He’s got that bit of gnarliness about him at times. He likes the battle, he likes the fight and I think that’s a positive thing because he’s not to be messed with. So far, I’ve been really impressed with him.
afcb.co.uk: Griffin Park had a certain charm – what’s the new stadium like?
PP: Griffin Park did have a charm and I loved going there and loved taking my family there. It had that uniqueness about it.
What they’ve done with the new ground is pretty unique as well. It’s been squeezed into a really tight space so it’s quirky but it’s not standardised.
Where the Main Stand is and where it connects in the two ends, there’s a drop-down in the roof so the number of rows of seats declines so it doesn’t look as if it’s just identikit.
Personally, I love the floodlights and they’ve got a retro feel to them. It’s tight and compact and when fans will be there in their numbers, it will feel as claustrophobic as Griffin Park but it still has that modernity about it.
There’s greater space and sight lines and there’s nothing getting in the way. There are no pillars in the press box or anyway else which get in your way.
It still has that feeling of intimacy. It’s less than a mile from the old ground so fans can still go to the old places but there are still one or two new places to socialise as well. It still has that connection to the area.
A lot of people have been a bit funny about the different coloured seats but I think that’s quite clever.
When we had fans in for a couple of games, it looked as if there were more on the far side from where we sit in the press box because of the break up of the colour of the seats.
When you need to replace them, you don’t need to get red seats, you can get different coloured ones.
I’ve seen rugby and football there and I think it works brilliantly for both. The pitch is still bedding-in so that will take a bit of time but I’m really impressed with the ground.
afcb.co.uk: Apart from Ivan Toney, who are Brentford’s ones to watch?
PP: Sergi Canos has been emerging. He missed most of last season and came back post-lockdown but was still getting rid of the rustiness having been out for a long time.
We’re starting to see the best of him now. He’s starting to gain a bit of confidence and scored a great hat-trick against Cardiff.
Christian Norgaard has just returned from injury and he’s got a battle with Vitaly Janelt for the spot in front of the back four. If Christian plays, I’m always very impressed.
He was a really important player last season because not only does he sit in front of the back four and break up play, he’s got good vision and is good at going forward.
Rico Henry has been attracting some attention and is a very impressive player, both from his defensive duties as a left-back and going forward as well.
afcb.co.uk: Are any players either injured or suspended against the Cherries?
PP: Pontus Jansson is a doubt. He’s been nursing an injury and has been on the sidelines but they’ve got options.
They trust Mads Bech Sorensen and Charlie Goode and Ethan Pinnock have been there.
Pontus came back for a couple of games and they don’t want to over risk him. I don’t know how fit he is at this moment in time.
afcb.co.uk: What’s your score prediction?
PP: This is a hard one because I’ve been impressed with what Bournemouth have done, especially having suffered relegation which can be tough to take.
But I’m going to be biased. I think it’s going to be an entertaining game and I’ll go with a 2-1 win to Brentford.
You can follow Phil on Twitter – @philcparry
Officials: Jarred Gillett (referee), Paul Hodskinson (assistant), Philip Dermott (assistant), Tim Robinson (fourth official).
