Adrian Clarke looks at key tactical points and players who can be decisive in Matchweek 11.
Brentford
The off-the-ball industry and defensive organisation that stood out for Brentford has dipped below its previous standards in recent weeks and it has cost them goals.
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Only the three promoted teams, plus Leicester City, have conceded more goals than the Bees' 17, of which five came at Newcastle United last weekend.
Thomas Frank will be determined to see an improvement when they entertain high-flying Brighton & Hove Albion on Friday.
Set piece frustration
Brentford are well known for their thorough preparation, which helped them cope with set-pieces last term. They let in only 11 goals from dead-ball situations, representing a 19.6 per cent share of their total conceded.
Of late, they have been far more fragile when defending corners and free-kicks.
During that heavy loss at St James’ Park, Bruno Guimaraes escaped everyone’s attentions from a simple far-post overload at a short corner.
In their last home match, a 3-0 defeat by Arsenal, William Saliba sneaked in front of zonal markers at the near post to flick in a header.
This was almost identical to the near-post header Timothy Castagne scored against Brentford on the opening weekend's 2-2 draw at Leicester.
Overall, Brentford have let in five set-piece goals this term, almost half the total they accrued in the entirety of 2021/22.
Brentford set-pieces goals conceded
| Season | 2021/22 | 2022/23 |
|---|---|---|
| Matches | 38 | 9 |
| Goals conceded | 11 | 5 |
| PL rank | 11th | Joint 16th |
| % goals against | 19.6 | 29.4 |
Brentford have been awkward opponents since making their Premier League debut last season and much of that is down to their hostile style of play.
Frank’s side work very hard as a collective to shut down space for opponents, disrupting their rhythm in possession.
Return to agression
In their loss to Arsenal, they were unusually passive. Defenders stood off, allowing Granit Xhaka to pick out a cross for Gabriel Jesus to score under no pressure.
They also backed off before Fabio Vieira let fly from 25 yards for Arsenal's third goal.
Earlier in the season, they also failed to close down space for the crosser at Fulham, and Aleksandar Mitrovic punished them with a late header to seal the points in a 3-2 win.
Brentford look a better side when they are proactive rather than reactive in their defending.
Cut out errors
They only suffered defeats by three or more goals in three of their 38 matches last season. It was rare to see them capitulate, even when they had an off day.
Therefore, those defeats by Arsenal and Newcastle will have refocused minds within their squad.
The initial priority will be to cut out individual mistakes. Goalkeeper David Raya and defender Ethan Pinnock both gave the ball away inside their own defensive third, gifting Newcastle goals.
And in the 5-2 win at home to Leeds United, Pontus Jansson’s misjudgement from a throw-in contributed to a needless concession, too.
It is time for Brentford to go back to basics and make themselves much harder to break down.
Also in this series
Part 1: Eze's dribbling skills can torment Leicester
Part 3: Coady and Tarkowski transforming Everton backline
Part 4: Foden can strike right at heart of Liverpool weakness
