Brentford vs Man City LIVE commentary: Bees hope to become first team to get past Guardiola as champions chase Liverpool – kick-off time, team news and how to follow

By premiernews On Feb 5, 2024

Manchester City will be desperate to put pressure on Premier League leaders Liverpool when they travel to face Brentford tonight.

Defending champions can make a leap Arsenal to close the gap with Jurgen Klopp's Reds move to just two points with a win following their 3-1 defeat to the Gunners on Sunday.

De Bruyne's return has been a big boost for Manchester City in recent weeksCredit: Getty

City will also be very motivated to take revenge Brentfordwho were the only team to win the double over them last season.

The last team to win three games in a row against the Citizens was Liverpool (four wins between March 2015 and December 2016), while Pep Guardiola has never lost three consecutive top-flight games against the same opponent.

But the Bees have endured a difficult campaign this year, with a terrible winter spell seeing them win just one of their last nine.

Thomas Frank's men's 3-2 defeat to Tottenham in midweek left them languishing in 15th place, just three points clear of the relegation zone.

Brentford vs Man City: Haaland's back

Guardiola has confirmed that the talismanic striker Erling Haaland He is ready to make his debut from the start against Brentford.

The Norwegian made his long-awaited return from injury during the second half of City's 3-1 win over Burnley last week.

Haaland missed 10 games during a two-month period on the sidelines but remains the Premier League's top scorer with 14 goals.

Now he is ready to start a top-flight match for the first time since December 6, but that will not be his only motivation.

Haaland has scored against 20 of the 21 teams he has faced in the Premier League, with the only exception being Brentford.

Among the players who will face at least three teams, only Harry Kane He has scored against all the rivals he has faced (32/32).

Haaland will be eager to break his scoring streak against the Bees

Despite playing just 199 minutes in six appearances in all competitions this season, Manchester City's Kevin De Bruyne has been involved in five goals (1 goal, 4 assists), averaging a goal involvement every 40 minutes so far. It's seasonal.
Brentford striker Ivan Toney has scored in each of his last four Premier League home games. He last scored in five consecutive home league games between January and March 2020 for Peterborough United.
Brentford have not kept a clean sheet in any of their last 11 Premier League games, losing eight of their last 10 in the competition (W2). They have conceded at least twice in each of their last five games, and the last time they did so in more consecutive league games was between March and May 2007 (8).

Brentford vs Man City: What has been said?

Guardiola has told Real Madrid They should call Manchester City make an offer for Haaland if they want to sign him.

Guardiola said: “By a report, by a journalist or a Twitter account, an Instagram account, do you think they are going to change something that is going to happen? It is not going to happen.”

“It will happen when Erling decides to extend the contract or not, when the club decides to extend the contract or not, or when we have potential offers for him or not.

“If someone wants Erling, it's easy. Call Manchester City and ask. It's what we do when we want to sign someone. It's not more complicated than that.”

Brentford are in miserable shapeCredit: 2024 Charlotte Wilson/Offside

Brentford have dropped a league-high 23 points from winning positions in the Premier League this season; That's as many points as they had lost in their two previous campaigns in the competition combined (8 in 2021-22, 15 last season).
Manchester City have won their last three away games in the Premier League despite losing in each of them. Only Manchester United have won four consecutive away games despite falling behind in all of them in the competition, and they did so in six in a row between September and December 2020.
Having drawn each of their first three home league games this season, none of Brentford's last eight at the Gtech Community Stadium have ended in a draw (W4 L4). The Bees have only kept a clean sheet in 11 home league games this season (3-0 against Burnley), but have only failed to score once so far (0-1 against Arsenal).

Toney is much more than just a Brentford goalscorer

Brentford vs Man City: team news

Tottenham loanee Sergio Reguilon could start after failing to face his parent club in midweek, with fellow full-backs Aaron Hickey and Rico Henry injured.

The hosts also have Bryan Mbeumo and Kevin Schade in the treatment room, with Frank Onyeka, Yoane Wissa and Saman Ghoddos unavailable due to international obligations.

City have a healthy state of health to contend with, following the return of Manuel Akanji from a knee problem.

Haaland is expected to start, while Kyle Walker He can return from the start after resting against Burnley.

Walker praised coach Guardiola for his understanding of his private lifeCredit: Getty

Manchester City have lost two of their last four Premier League away games against London teams (W1 D1), as many as in their previous 16 trips to the capital (W12 D2).
Man City manager Pep Guardiola has never before lost three consecutive top-flight games against an opponent, something Brentford could achieve in this match.
Brentford defeated Manchester City in the Premier League last season, beating them 2-1 away and 1-0 at home. The last team to win three games in a row against the Citizens was Liverpool (four between March 2015 and December 2016).

Brentford vs Man City: talkSPORT coverage

This Premier League clash will take place on Monday, February 5.

Kickoff at Gtech Community Stadium is scheduled for 8 p.m.

talkSPORT will have EXCLUSIVE live coverage from west London, presented by Adrian Durham.

Commentary will then come from Sam Matterface and the former England midfielder. danny murphy.

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