Manchester City are looking to maintain their upsurge in form when they face Brentford away from home in the PREMIER League on Tuesday night.
City’s remarkable slump to end 2024 has been succeeded by three-straight victories, although Pep Guardiola’s side are likely fighting for a top-four berth as opposed to the league title. Back-to-back wins over Leicester and a West Ham side who sacked their manager days after the defeat hardly indicate a major resurgence either.
They were utterly ruthless at the weekend, though, as they put eight past League Two Salford in the third round of the FA Cup.
Brentford only have the PREMIER League to worry about during the second half of the season after they were stunned by Plymouth in west London on Saturday. Thomas Frank’s heavy rotation has cost the Bees in both domestic cup competitions, but perhaps the Dane’s focus is securing Brentford’s first taste of European football.
They’re currently 11th, though, having endured a tough few weeks. Tuesday’s hosts are currently seven points back on the sixth-place Cityzens having lost three of their previous five league outings.
Here is 90min’s guide to Brentford vs Man City.
Brentford vs Man City head-to-head record
Current form (all competitions)
|
Brentford |
Man City |
|---|---|
|
Brentford 0-1 Plymouth – 11/01/25 |
Man City 8-0 Salford – 11/01/25 |
|
Southampton 0-5 Brentford – 04/01/25 |
Man City 4-1 West Ham – 04/01/25 |
|
Brentford 1-3 Arsenal – 01/01/25 |
Leicester 0-2 Man City – 29/12/24 |
|
Brighton 0-0 Brighton – 27/12/24 |
Man City 1-1 Everton – 26/12/24 |
|
Brentford 0-2 Nottingham Forest – 22/12/24 |
Aston Villa 2-1 Man City – 21/12/24 |
|
Country |
TV channel/live stream |
|---|---|
|
United Kingdom |
discovery+, discovery+ App, TNT Sports 2 |
|
United States |
Peacock |
|
Canada |
fuboTV Canada, Fubo Sports Network 5 Canada |
Brentford’s downturn in form can be attributed to their lengthy injury list which won’t be getting any shorter in time for City’s visit.
Josh Dasilva, Ethan Pinnock, Kristoffer Ajer, Ben Mee, Aaron Hickey, Igor Thiago, Gustavo Nunes and Ryan Trevitt are all out injured for the hosts.
Frank did drop Yoane Wissa and Bryan Mbeumo for Saturday’s FA Cup defeat, but the pair did enter the fray in a bid to salvage the tie. Both will start on Tuesday alongside the speedy Kevin Schade.
Rico Henry also made his long-awaited return to action at the weekend and was included in the manager’s XI, but he’ll drop to the bench in midweek with Keane Lewis-Potter starting at left-back.
Brentford predicted lineup vs Man City (4-3-3): Flekken; Roerslev, Van den Berg, Collins, Lewis-Potter; Norgaard, Janelt, Damsgaard; Mbeumo, Wissa, Schade.
Kyle Walker’s desire for a new challenge means he’s unlikely to feature until his future’s resolved, with interest arriving from Milan. The veteran defender was out of the squad entirely at the weekend.
Guardiola has several big names to bring back into his XI, although James McAtee staked his claim for PREMIER League minutes by netting a hat-trick against Salford.
Oscar Bobb is back in training and closing in on a return but won’t play a part in west London, while City are still without Rodri, Ruben Dias and John Stones.
Man City predicted lineup vs Brentford (4-1-4-1): Ortega; Lewis, Akanji, Ake, Gvardiol; Kovacic; Savinho, De Bruyne, Foden, Doku; Haaland.
Brentford’s home form was key to their early-season success, but they’ve lost their last three games at the Gtech in all competitions. Thus, Tuesday’s trip perhaps isn’t as daunting for City as it may have felt a month ago.
While City were ruthlessly efficient at the weekend, their recent PREMIER League victories have hardly suggested this is a team capable of going on a run. They boast flaws Brentford’s proficient frontline are capable of exploiting and the hosts should have success under the lights.
However, the injury-hit Bees are running on fumes and are low on confidence heading into Tuesday’s game. Against teams of City’s ilk, they tend to cede too much control and are susceptible to opposition barrages. Sustained pressure will prove key in a City win here.
