Brentford travel to the Amex on Wednesday night knowing that victory will see them leapfrog a Brighton team who were sitting eighth in the Premier League after the weekend fixtures had played out.
It won’t be easy, of course. Then again it never is. However, with Christian Norgaard missing through suspension after passing the yellow card threshold in the 3-1 defeat of Luton Town, Brentford’s task has been made that little bit harder. He really has been in wonderful form so far this season – scooping back-to-back star player awards in the most recent fixtures – and his absence would hurt anybody.
Instead, The Bees will have everything crossed that Mathias Jensen is fit to return after sitting out the last two games. I suspect he would have relished the visit of Luton on Saturday, such is the way he has been playing this season. Even without him, Brentford were eventually able to nullify stubborn opponents as things stepped up significantly in the second half. Something all the more pleasing given the enforced substitution of Kris Ajer, named in the starting XI, following an injury in the warm-up. Saman Ghoddos again stepping into the breach in some style.
Thomas Frank has probably one of the trickier selection choices of the season for this one. Stick with the 5-3-2 formation he so often deploys against ‘top eight’ clubs or play a more traditional 4-3-3? At the moment, only he will know the extent of the injury/fitness situation and, as such, whether Vitaly Janelt needs to return to centre-mid rather than wing-back.
For what it’s worth, regardless of Ajer and Jensen’s fitness I suspect Thomas will go for the more defensive lineup. Yarmoliuk, Onyeka and either Jensen or Baptiste in the middle. Take it as red that Neal Maupay will then get some form of run out against his old club whilst deploying KLP early may be no bad thing.
Personally speaking, I’d go for the more attacking formation. Play Wissa, Mbeumo and hope that Neal alongside them does what players are supposed to when facing their former teams. Brighton are missing both Mahmoud Dahoud and Lewis Dunk – suspended following recent red cards – along with the phalanx of injury-related absences impacting so many teams at present.
Yet with our host’s Premier League form experiencing a (relative) blip – the last four games have included a draw at Everton, two points dropped at home to Sheffield United (not a typo) and then the weekend’s reverse at Chelsea – is this perhaps the best time possible for what is always a tricky trip? The extra five games in a wonderful Europa League campaign won’t have helped tired limbs any, despite the fantastic achievement in qualifying from the group and still with the opportunity to top the pile. Should Thomas push it from the get-go?
Truly, I don’t think we’ve gone into a game with this many ifs, buts and maybes about selection and tactics in a long time. That goes for the Seagulls, too. The only thing we can say for sure is that it presents a wonderful opportunity for both teams if a top-eight finish or higher is a genuine aspiration.
Then again, it is also what happens when the games come this thick and fast. December is always busy and with Amazon again looking to enjoy their own slice of the TV pie for this round of games, it at least allows those who cannot travel midweek the chance to stay close to the action.
Whoever starts and however you follow, whether in the ground or from the comfort of the sofa, it promises to be a prime opportunity for us all to enjoy some quality football. Here’s to a Christmas cracker (sorry, gone early on that one).
