Preview: Manchester United travel to Brentford for early kickoffShareManchester United travel to West London on Saturday lunchtime to meet a Brentford side who’ve become victims of their own success.By Ian KingIt’s been a stop-start season so far for both teamsManchester United arrive in West London for the first Premier League match of the weekend with The Old Trafford Rollercoaster on an upwards trajectory following their win against Chelsea last Saturday night, a result that brought a flicker of optimism back to the club following another underwhelming start to the season. Brentford were denuded of some of their best players, as well as head coach Thomas Frank, during their summer and so far have paid a price for that, with just one win from their first five games and a feeling growing that they could be on for a long, hard season. Their 3-1 defeat at Fulham last weekend left them hovering inelegantly just above the relegation places.The Bees have stung Manchester United plenty of times beforeWith Brentford’s ascent to the Premier League having coincided with Manchester United: The Perennial Crisis Years, their record against the Red Devils is decent. When the two teams met at the end of last season at The Brentford Community Stadium, the Bees won 4-3. Indeed, of the four meetings between the two teams at Brentford since their promotion, United have only won once, and that was the first meeting of the two clubs here, in January 2022. H2H results for Brentford home games in the Premier LeagueThe return of Bryan MbeumoThere’ll be one name who’ll be causing more concern to the Brentford head coach Keith Andrews than anyone else. Bryan Mbeumo left for Old Trafford for a fee worth up to £71 million during the summer, and it’d be understandable if Bees fans were a little nervous at the prospect of him returning to plunder a goal or two. The good news for them there is that he’s only scored once in five games for his new club in the League so far this season.Brentford’s main goal threat so far this season has been the Brazilian striker Igor Thiago, who’s scored three times in all competitions and has stepped reasonably confidently into their first eleven after having only made eight appearances for the Bees last season. United haven’t kept a clean sheet yet this season, so there’s space to be got into if they can get the ball forward into those attacking midfield positions.Brentford pair could return from identical injuries, while Manchester United will be missing a suspended CasemiroFor Brentford, both Gustavo Nunes and Paris Maghoma have had matching hamstring injuries, and either or both could return for this match and will be facing fitness tests. Otherwise, expect Keith Andrews’ team selection to be largely influenced by his opposite number Ruben Amorim’s obdurate devotion to a 3-4-3 formation. Diogo Dalot also faces a fight to get fit after missing United’s last two games. Noussair Mazraoui or Amad Diallo will deputise at right wing-back if he’s not ready. Casemiro is suspended for a game following his careless red card against Chelsea and will most likely be replaced by Manuel Ugarte, while Lisandro Martínez remains a long-term injury, though could be back in a few weeks. Brentford know what’s coming, but can they do anything about it?Other managers know fully well what’s coming with Manchester United this season, but what do they do about it? That’s the most fundamental question, ahead of this match. It’s unsurprising that Brentford have struggled so far this season, considering their personnel exodus during the summer, and Keith Andrews hasn’t quite got a revamped team right yet. Manchester United, meanwhile, remain a riddle wrapped in a mystery inside an enigma. United still have it in them to pull something out of the bag in a big match, as they did against Chelsea last weekend, but it’s been years since they demonstrated any ability whatsoever to turn those little sparks of optimism into something more consistent. It feels like these two teams are more likely than anything else to cancel each other, and with the tendency of Saturday lunchtime matches to err towards the soporific, I’m going to go for a 1-1 draw in this one, though as so often with Manchester United in recent years, the most realistic score prediction is “who knows?”(Cover image from IMAGO)You can follow every game from the Premier League with FotMob this season – featuring deep stats coverage, xG, and player ratings. Download the free app here.Preview: Manchester United travel to Brentford for early kickoffManchester United travel to West London on Saturday lunchtime to meet a Brentford side who’ve become victims of their own success.By Ian KingIt’s been a stop-start season so far for both teamsManchester United arrive in West London for the first Premier League match of the weekend with The Old Trafford Rollercoaster on an upwards trajectory following their win against Chelsea last Saturday night, a result that brought a flicker of optimism back to the club following another underwhelming start to the season. Brentford were denuded of some of their best players, as well as head coach Thomas Frank, during their summer and so far have paid a price for that, with just one win from their first five games and a feeling growing that they could be on for a long, hard season. Their 3-1 defeat at Fulham last weekend left them hovering inelegantly just above the relegation places.The Bees have stung Manchester United plenty of times beforeWith Brentford’s ascent to the Premier League having coincided with Manchester United: The Perennial Crisis Years, their record against the Red Devils is decent. When the two teams met at the end of last season at The Brentford Community Stadium, the Bees won 4-3. Indeed, of the four meetings between the two teams at Brentford since their promotion, United have only won once, and that was the first meeting of the two clubs here, in January 2022. H2H results for Brentford home games in the Premier LeagueThe return of Bryan MbeumoThere’ll be one name who’ll be causing more concern to the Brentford head coach Keith Andrews than anyone else. Bryan Mbeumo left for Old Trafford for a fee worth up to £71 million during the summer, and it’d be understandable if Bees fans were a little nervous at the prospect of him returning to plunder a goal or two. The good news for them there is that he’s only scored once in five games for his new club in the League so far this season.Brentford’s main goal threat so far this season has been the Brazilian striker Igor Thiago, who’s scored three times in all competitions and has stepped reasonably confidently into their first eleven after having only made eight appearances for the Bees last season. United haven’t kept a clean sheet yet this season, so there’s space to be got into if they can get the ball forward into those attacking midfield positions.Brentford pair could return from identical injuries, while Manchester United will be missing a suspended CasemiroFor Brentford, both Gustavo Nunes and Paris Maghoma have had matching hamstring injuries, and either or both could return for this match and will be facing fitness tests. Otherwise, expect Keith Andrews’ team selection to be largely influenced by his opposite number Ruben Amorim’s obdurate devotion to a 3-4-3 formation. Diogo Dalot also faces a fight to get fit after missing United’s last two games. Noussair Mazraoui or Amad Diallo will deputise at right wing-back if he’s not ready. Casemiro is suspended for a game following his careless red card against Chelsea and will most likely be replaced by Manuel Ugarte, while Lisandro Martínez remains a long-term injury, though could be back in a few weeks. Brentford know what’s coming, but can they do anything about it?Other managers know fully well what’s coming with Manchester United this season, but what do they do about it? That’s the most fundamental question, ahead of this match. It’s unsurprising that Brentford have struggled so far this season, considering their personnel exodus during the summer, and Keith Andrews hasn’t quite got a revamped team right yet. Manchester United, meanwhile, remain a riddle wrapped in a mystery inside an enigma. United still have it in them to pull something out of the bag in a big match, as they did against Chelsea last weekend, but it’s been years since they demonstrated any ability whatsoever to turn those little sparks of optimism into something more consistent. It feels like these two teams are more likely than anything else to cancel each other, and with the tendency of Saturday lunchtime matches to err towards the soporific, I’m going to go for a 1-1 draw in this one, though as so often with Manchester United in recent years, the most realistic score prediction is “who knows?”(Cover image from IMAGO)You can follow every game from the Premier League with FotMob this season – featuring deep stats coverage, xG, and player ratings. Download the free app here.