Brentford head to Arsenal on Wednesday evening knowing that if they can somehow turn their away form to match that seen at home, they’d be Champions League contenders.
Laugh it up, but the table doesn’t lie. Another win at the Gtech on the weekend just gone, the 3-1 defeat of Burnley, means the Bees are a mere four points behind third-placed Chelsea with a third of the season played. Indeed, only the unusually abject reverse to Manchester City and draw with the aforementioned Blues has seen Keith Andrews’ side drop points in front of their own fans.
Dodging the potato skin marked Burnley was particularly pleasing, given the way Brentford never gave up until eventually the dam burst. That trio of late goals more than ample reward on an afternoon where the visitors did everything possible to exploit spoiling tactics and game-killing in a desperate attempt to go back to Turf Moor with a point.
The trio of Igor Thiago, Mikkel Damsgaard and Jordan Henderson stood out for The Bees. The former’s voracious appetite for goal seeing him close to within a hat-trick of the Premier League’s current top goalscorer, Erling Haaland. How the Brazilian is able to win the ball and make space to even shoot against an Arsenal side whose defence is the meanest in the division will be key as to whether The Bees can earn what would only be a second away win in the League all season.
David Raya (remember him?) has only had to pick the ball out of the back of the net seven times this campaign. Whilst the all-time Premier League record of just 15 conceded by Chelsea in 2004-05 may perhaps be a tough one to match, they’re giving it their best shot. The stingy backline helping them move five points clear at the top of the table.
For Brentford, the question is not so much whether Thiago can do it as whether Thiago even plays.
There has been nothing said about his fitness after the weekend action. Whilst he walked off the field unaided during time added on, the fact that he was flanked by the club physios has understandably got people concerned. With no realistic cover up top and three games in eight days – that’s before we even hit the heart of a busy December that also includes a League Cup quarter-final away to Manchester City – nobody will be wanting to take any risks if he is a doubt.
One could argue that Brentford have been crying out for alternatives all season with, perhaps, Wissa the rat’s shenanigans distracting from what has always seemed an obvious gap. He’s gone and so now it’s all on Thiago. Fingers crossed he has been wrapped in cotton wool. Likewise, that he remains this way until January at the very least.
Let’s assume he’s fit to play, then the other questions surround whether the changes implemented by Keith Andrews for Burnley were around tactics or squad rotation. Presumably, Yehor Yarmoliuk was rested with the upcoming sequence of games in mind. Lovely as it was to see Mathias Jensen starting once more (I’m still drooling over that one-two with Kayode that would have led to goal-of-the-season had Damsgaard been able to keep his eventual shot just a bit lower) I can only imagine normal service will be resumed in the middle on Wednesday evening.
The more interesting question is that of the defence. Aaron Hickey was finally returned to the left after Kris Ajer had played the last few games in that position. My own feelings on this have been well documented – the Norwegian has done way better than I’d have thought but he’s a natural right-footer. Brighton, in particular, saw the team exposed with Yankuba Minteh causing havoc down that flank.
Unless Keith has got plans to return to the dreaded back five then keeping Hickey would seem to be the more prudent selection. Then again, with Reiss Nelson unable to face his parent club and Fabio Carvalho out for the season, perhaps he’ll have no choice. Especially if Ouattara or Schade are pressed into the goal-scorer’s position in lieu of Thiago. Expect Henderson and Damsgaard to spend all evening looking to spring the off-side trap if so.
To be fair, expect them to be doing that even if Thiago starts. Loathe though I am to admit it, Arsenal look terrifyingly good this season. There’s been no sign of the traditional wobble that normally impacts them although it is only December. League Leaders rather than Leeds United tribute act for all the right reasons. So far.
I do have a soft spot for Mikel Arteta’s side. The memory of Sergi Canos scoring our first top-flight goal in our first game at this level is still one that burns strong. The Bees going top of the Premier League that Friday night after Christian Norgaard (remember him) doubled the lead. It was the perfect cherry on the cake of a Wembley victory (not a typo) in the play-offs as the Brentford story saw another chapter written, no matter how improbable it would have seemed to most outside TW8.
Frustratingly, that’s been the only win against The Gunners since then. Brentford have come close but a draw is the best they’ve managed. With two of the team from that night now plying their trade at The Emirates, let’s look at it more as long-term vindication that we’ve been doing something right.
It still feels like an absolute waste of Christian Norgaard’s talent to see him doing nothing more than keep the bench warm for Arsenal but he must have recognised the challenges in breaking into their team when he moved. Besides, given as European football sees Arsenal with an even more congested December than The Bees perhaps now is when he is given his chance to show what we ‘ve all known for years that he can do.
It’s first-world problems for Mikel Arteta, of course. They’ve got a squad and a budget that most teams could only dream of. Nice but also irrelevant in a one-off game which is how Brentford need to look at it. We’re not in the group of title contenders so there is zero pressure to keep up that charge.
Then again, we’re not in the desperation stakes like Burnley and so, all being well, have enough about us to make this one competitive rather than turgid. Play the game rather than the occasion or the quality. Focus on our thing rather than them. Upset the home fans and see what happens.
This one really has the potential to be a cracking game. Arsenal with the pressure of expectation – the fans and pundits expecting this to only end as ‘home win’. The Bees with nothing to lose and an away record that has to level out at some point. Especially given how we’ve seen them play at home.
To be fair, they should have taken the win at Brighton when last on the travels but allowed the hosts back in as 0-1 eventually became 2-1 late on. This time around, can Keith Andrews go all the way?
With away tickets long since sold out, the short trip up the Piccadilly line will see the Bees support travelling en masse. Here’s to seeing if we can make the return journey with all three points…
