Brentford

High-flying Brentford host league leaders Arsenal on Thursday night under the lights. The last meeting between these sides came in December. Merino and Saka got the goals in a 2-0 Arsenal win. The West London outfit have not beaten Arsenal in their last 9 attempts, with their last win in this fixture coming on a special day in 2021, where they kicked off their first campaign in the Premier League with a 2-0 home win under Thomas Frank. Brentford come into this clash off the back of 3-2 against Newcastle United at St James’ Park. Janelt, Thiago and Ouattara all found the net to give Brentford their first win at Newcastle in 92 years. As a result, The Bees sit in 7th, level on points with Liverpool in 6th. In their last 5 Premier League games, Brentford have picked up 9 points out of a possible 15, which puts them 6th in the form table. Arsenal come into this fixture off the back of a comfortable 3-0 win against Sunderland. A goal from Zubimendi and a brace from Gyokeres gave The Gunners all 3 points. As a result, the title race remains the same, with Mikel Arteta’s men leading the race by 6 points after Manchester City left it late to secure maximum points at Anfield. In their last 5 Premier League fixtures, Arsenal have picked up 8 points out of a possible 15, which puts them 7th in the form table, 1 point and place below Brentford. Keith Andrews will be without on-loan forward Reiss Nelson on Thursday, along with the suspended Kevin Schade and Antoni Milambo, Fabio Carvalho and Josh Dasilva through injury. It is understood that Leandro Trossard, who was forced off during Arsenal’s 3-0 win against Sunderland, will be assessed ahead of Thursday’s London Derby. English Winger Bukayo Saka is unlikely to return for Thursday’s match but is expected to return in time for the North London Derby on February 22nd. Martin Odegaard has missed Arsenal’s last 2 matches but could be set for a return to the squad, although not guaranteed. Prospect Max Downman has been out with an ankle injury since December and is only a few weeks away from recovery. The Gunners will not be missing any players through suspension. Rico Henry: “The gaffer [Keith Andrews] has been good to me. He kept saying that we have good squad depth. He told me to keep doing what I’m doing and that my time would come. “That’s what I did. I’ve been pushing the boys. It’s a team effort. Even when you’re not playing, you still want to help the boys and try and win.” “Now I’m back playing a bit more, it’s easier. I’ve been able to build connections with the boys. Nathan [Collins] is playing left centre-back now, and I’d never played with him like that before – it had been Sepp [van den Berg] or Eth [Pinnock]. Mikel Arteta on Viktor Gyokeres’ goals against Sunderland: “Very happy. He deserves it. He is a super committed player, and he wants to get better. He saw the line-up up and I told him he’d come in and make an impact.