Brentford and Crystal Palace will both seek an immediate return to winning ways when they do battle in Saturday's Premier League showdown at the Brentford Community Stadium.
The Bees went down 2-0 to Manchester City in midweek, while Patrick Vieira's side were held to a 1-1 draw by a resurgent Norwich City.
Match preview
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Attempting to get one over the reigning champions is a tall order in itself without the absence of a star striker, but with Brentford losing Ivan Toney to a late calf issue, Pep Guardiola's men got the job done with professionalism on Wednesday.
Raheem Sterling won yet another penalty for the Citizens - seeing him regain the Premier League leadership in that category - which Riyad Mahrez comfortably converted before Brentford's attempts to play out from the back were punished by Kevin De Bruyne.
Brentford's streak of red may cause Thomas Frank and his crop to start looking over their shoulder, with the Bees still 14th in the table but now just six points above the relegation zone having played a game more than 18th-placed Norwich.
The 2-1 loss at the Etihad Stadium made it six defeats in a row across all competitions for this formerly formidable Brentford outfit - who have conceded at least two goals on each occasion in that abysmal stretch - and it is now five top-flight losses on the bounce for the newly-promoted outfit.
Arsenal and Liverpool need no reminding how resilient Brentford can be in front of their own supporters - with four of their six league wins this term coming on home soil - and a positive result would see them improve their league standing at the expense of Palace's.
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Back from the Africa Cup of Nations with a bang, Wilfried Zaha stamped his authority on the Carrow Road turf with a magnificent long-range effort to restore parity against Norwich before a warm embrace with manager Patrick Vieira.
Teemu Pukki had given the hosts the lead after just 38 seconds in Wednesday's game - the fastest goal of the 2021-22 Premier League so far - and Palace now face a crucial period of London derbies if their top-half ambitions are to remain alive after Zaha's wayward penalty following his thunderbolt.
Vieira's side must also lock horns with capital rivals Chelsea and Watford before the month ends, and having now failed to win any of their last four in the Premier League, the Eagles are now 13th in the standings - one place and two points above their upcoming opponents with a game in hand.
The Eagles being dragged into a late scrap for survival is not beyond the realm of possibility - especially if Vieira wants to see how far he can take his side in the FA Cup - and Brentford will sense an opportunity with Palace now winless in six league matches away from home.
The first-ever Premier League meeting between Brentford and Palace in the second gameweek of the season ended in a drab 0-0 draw at Selhurst Park, but the Bees have won the last three clashes with the Eagles on home soil, although their most recent one was all the way back in 1977.
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Team News
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Brentford duo Yoane Wissa and Bryan Mbeumo were both fit to return off the bench at the Etihad after recovering from bouts of COVID-19, and Frank hopes to welcome Toney back to the fold as well.
Vitaly Janelt also missed the 2-0 midweek defeat due to an abdominal issue but could return for this one, while Tarique Fosu, Julian Jeanvier and Mathias Jorgensen continue to recover from their issues.
January arrival Christian Eriksen is still building up his match fitness, and Frank may consider demoting Saman Ghoddos and Mads Roerslev down to the bench given his refreshed options in attack.
Meanwhile, Palace are relatively well-stocked for this battle after welcome James McArthur back to the bench at Carrow Road, but Nathan Ferguson has suffered a fresh injury setback.
Senegal AFCON hero Cheikhou Kouyate has been enjoying the post-trophy celebrations and is also an uncertainty for this one, with any potential minutes sure to come from the bench.
Vieira may opt to freshen up his forward line with the introductions of Odsonne Edouard and Eberechi Eze, with Jean-Philippe Mateta's place at risk despite his run of matches in recent weeks.
Brentford possible starting lineup:
Raya; Ajer, Jansson, Pinnock; Canos, Norgaard, Onyeka, Jensen, Henry; Mbeumo, Wissa
Crystal Palace possible starting lineup:
Guaita; Ward, Andersen, Guehi, Mitchell; Schlupp, Hughes, Gallagher; Eze, Edouard, Zaha
We say: Brentford 2-2 Crystal Palace
Brentford were certainly not embarrassed by Man City in midweek, and the prospect of welcoming Toney, Wissa and/or Mbeumo back to the starting lineup bodes well for the desperate Bees.
The last thing that Palace need is another draw - especially away from home - and their bountiful options in the final third should cause the hosts all sorts of problems, but we have faith in Frank's side to end their winless streak in an entertaining stalemate.
Top tip
Data Analysis
Our analysis of all available data, including recent performances and player stats up until an hour before kickoff, suggested the most likely outcome of this match was a Brentford win with a probability of 37.81%. A win for Crystal Palace had a probability of 34.29% and a draw had a probability of 27.9%.
The most likely scoreline for a Brentford win was 1-0 with a probability of 11.46%. The next most likely scorelines for that outcome were 2-1 (7.99%) and 2-0 (6.98%). The likeliest Crystal Palace win was 0-1 (10.78%), while for a drawn scoreline it was 1-1 (13.13%). The actual scoreline of 0-0 was predicted with a 9.4% likelihood. Our team at Sports Mole correctly predicted a draw in this match.
