Brentford FC hosts West Ham United in a London derby on Saturday afternoon with a whole lot on the line for both sides. The Hammers are two points above Tottenham Hotspur, for the very last slot above the drop zone. So absolutely every single point and every goal differential counts right now for them. As for Brentford, they are just one point behind seventh place AFC Bournemouth (although they would still have to leapfrog eighth place Chelsea) for a UEFA Europa Conference League berth.
The Bees are two points behind sixth place Brighton for Europa League qualification. So again, there is much more at stake here than you might think.
West Ham United at Brentford FC
Kickoff: Sat. May 2, at 3pm GTech Community Stadium, London, UK
PL Position, Form Guide: Brentford FC 9th, 48 pts, DDDDL West Ham, 17th, 36 pts, DLWDW
Google’s Result Probability: Brentford FC win 48% Draw 25% West Ham win 27%
Team News for Both Sides
Brentford have a trio of injury absentees that could all be in contention to make the matchday squad here. A return should come either here on Saturday, or in the next match, exactly one week later for Jordan Henderson, Rico Henry and Vitaly Janelt.
Henderson has been out since the end of March with an undisclosed injury while Janelt (bruised metatarsal) and Henry (minor hamstring problem) have been unavailable since February 21 and March 3rd respectively. Meanwhile Fábio Carvalho and Antoni Milambo remain out for the rest of the season with serious ACL injuries.
Shifting gears to West Ham, they are fully fit, basically. Nothing new here, as they have only the one injury absence, long term absentee Lukasz Fabianski (lower back).
Paul M. Banks is the Founding Editor of The Sports Bank. He’s also the author of “Transatlantic Passage: How the English Premier League Redefined Soccer in America,” and “No, I Can’t Get You Free Tickets: Lessons Learned From a Life in the Sports Media Industry.”
He currently contributes to USA Today’s NFL Wires Network, Ratings and RG. His past bylines include the New York Daily News, Sports Illustrated and the Chicago Tribune. His work has been featured in numerous outlets, including the Wall Street Journal, Forbes and the Washington Post.