Brentford v Man United: Line-ups, stats and preview

Preview for Brentford v Man United

Manchester United head to the Gtech Community Stadium tomorrow hoping to build on the hard-fought win over Chelsea last weekend.

It needn’t have been a stressful evening for United when the visitors had goalkeeper Robert Sanchez sent off in the opening minutes with the home side swiftly establishing a 2-0 lead thanks to goals from Bruno Fernandes and Casemiro.

But, somewhat typically, they made it hard for themselves with Casemiro seeing red before half-time for a brainless challenge on Andrey Santos.

Chelsea pulled one back but United held on for their second win in the league this season.

In theory, a trip to Brentford gives them the chance to build on that success and finally gain some momentum as Ruben Amorim continues his bid to convince fans he is the man to restore the glory days to Old Trafford.

Bryan Mbeumo makes his first return to Brentford tomorrow and has enjoyed working under the Portuguese and says his methods are not dissimilar to former Bees boss Thomas Frank.

He said: “I’ve found some similarities between them. He always tries to do training in a fun way and I think this is really important – to get some fun at football – because it makes life more enjoyable.

“A new manager is a challenge for me. The training sessions are intense. He wants us to do a lot, do big efforts, and that can only help us to be ready on the pitch. I like it.

“I think it’s important to improve and get better each day I’m here, and that’s what I always do. With time, the team can be better and we’re going to work really hard for that. We know we’re in a difficult moment, but we just need to stick together.”

For all Mbeumo’s confidence, United have a poor record at the Gtech. They have won just once, their first visit in 2022, but have conceded four goals in two of their last three visits.

And it won’t be easy tomorrow either. Brentford are 17th in the table but that record is largely due to struggles on the road with defeats at Nottingham Forest, Sunderland and Fulham.

At home, they are an altogether different proposition, as shown by taking four points from games with Aston Villa and Chelsea.

Keith Andrews has not torn up the playbook he inherited from Frank and the Bees continue to look a well-organised outfit.

Team News for Brentford v Man United

Brentford are hoping to have Paris Maghoma and Gustavo Nunes available.

United will be without the suspended Casemiro but both Mason Mount and Matheus Cunha are pushing for recalls. Diogo Dalot is likely to be fit.

Predicted lineups for Brentford v Man United

Brentford: Kelleher; Van den Berg, Collins, Pinnock; Kayode, Henderson, Yarmoliuk, Lewis-Potter; Damsgaard; Schade, Thiago

Man United: Bayindir; Maguire, De Ligt, Shaw; Dalot, Ugarte, Fernandes, Dorgu; Mbeumo, Cunha; Sesko

How to watch Brentford v Man United: TV and online streams

Brentford v Manchester United kicks off at 1230pm UK time tomorrow. It is being shown on TNT Sports and can be streamed via the discovery+ app.

Stats for Brentford v Man United

• Brentford have won two of their last three home Premier League games against Manchester United
• Between February 2020 and January 2022, Manchester United went 13 Premier League games without defeat in London (W8 D5). Since then, they’ve lost 15 of 24 visits to the capital (W3 D6)
• Since Manchester United won 3-1 away at Brentford in January 2022, the home team has won six of the last seven Premier League meetings between Brentford and Man Utd (D1).