Brentford take on Aston Villa in the Carabao Cup on Tuesday (8pm kick-off BST) at Gtech Community Stadium, as both sides look to progress to round four of the competition.
The Bees beat Bournemouth 2-0 in round two at Vitality Stadium, while this is Villa's first game of the competition due to their involvement in the Europa League.
Analysis, team news, match officials and more. Here's everything you need to know before kick-off.
Buy your tickets now for Brentford's Carabao Cup third round clash against Aston Villa. Tickets are on general sale - bring friends and family for a night under the lights.
Pre-match Analysis
Stephen Gillett, Playmaker Stats: Carvalho could star in cup again
Fresh from scoring a last-gasp equaliser against Chelsea, Fábio Carvalho will be among a host of Brentford players looking to impress head coach Keith Andrews in Tuesday's Carabao Cup clash against Aston Villa.
Carvalho came off the bench to bag the Bees a precious point against the world champions on Saturday and he afterwards received praise from his manager, who stated that the 23-year-old "hasn't had as many minutes as he deserves."
Andrews further highlighted the former Liverpool playmaker's "special" dedication to his craft and backed him to become "a big player" for his side.
Such positive feedback will no doubt give Carvalho a confidence boost ahead of the cup showdown with Villa, and the Portuguese Under-21 international will hope to deliver another knockout cup display after his starring role against Bournemouth in the previous round.
Carvalho scored the Bees' first-half opener and then led the break (after the break!), which resulted in Igor Thiago's second goal in a gritty 2-0 win at Vitality Stadium.
Brentford's number 14 was diligent in his defensive duties, pitching in with three clearances that night, but it was the fantastic timing of his run and cool finish which made the difference.
With Kevin Schade, Dango Ouattara and Thiago also off the mark in 2025/26, Brentford have retained a cutting edge in attack - but their visitors in midweek are still awaiting their first goal of the campaign.
Unai Emery's side picked up their second point of the campaign courtesy of a goalless draw with Everton last weekend. However, the Villans sit 19th in the Premier League and their early season displays have lacked creativity in the final third.
The expected goals metric offers Villa some consolation, as they have created 3.32 xG over their four Premier League games to date, but an inability to fashion good quality opportunities is underscored by the Midlanders having the joint-lowest xG-per-shot value (0.08) in the top tier.
Emery's tactical nous will ensure that Villa offer a formidable test on Tuesday, however, and the likely midfield battle between Frank Onyeka and John McGinn could be defining.
That head-to-head is profiled in the matchday programme, and the Brentford midfielder will be another player intent on giving Andrews a selection migraine ahead of another west London derby against Fulham.
To circle back to Brentford’s saviour against Chelsea, Saturday’s visit to Craven Cottage will offer Carvalho an even greater incentive to impress against Villa - as he would no doubt love to start for the Bees back at the club where he made his name.
Scout Report
Dan Long, Sky Sports: There is every reason to believe Aston Villa’s upward trajectory will continue
For the third season in succession, Aston Villa secured a top-seven finish in 2024/25.
Granted, the year before will live longer in the memory, given they finished fourth for the first time since 1995/96 and secured a place in the Champions League for the very first time.
That was special, but this illustrated consistency and an ability to manage the added load European competition brings.
As well as runs to the FA Cup semi-final and Champions League quarter-final, Villa recorded their third-highest points tally (66), third-highest number of goals scored (58) and third-highest number of wins (19). No mean feat, considering this is a club that has missed just three Premier League seasons in history.
Villa did miss out on a return to the Champions League on the very final day of last term, though. Morgan Rogers' opener against Manchester United was controversially ruled out for offside and later, Amad Diallo and Christian Eriksen scored to seal a 2-0 win for Ruben Amorim's side.
Only goal difference denied them fifth place, which was taken by Newcastle United. Regardless, Unai Emery said afterwards his side "did not deserve more than the result we have."
Though there was plenty of movement in the transfer window last summer, there is a strong squad in place at Villa Park, and one that is capable of challenging at the top end of the table again this term.
And so it will come as no surprise Emery's men are priced as short as 5/4 to finish in the top six, 4/1 to finish in the top four, and are 11/1 to finish in the top two.
They may well have a chance to go deep in the Europa League, too. English clubs have won four of the last nine European trophies available since the start of 2022/23, which will give Villa a source of inspiration.
The disappointment of narrowly missing out on the Champions League could yet serve as extra fuel, sharpening their focus for another tilt at the top four while embracing the opportunity to lift a rare piece of silverware.
There is every reason to believe Villa’s upward trajectory will continue - and another special season may be just around the corner.
In the Dugout
Unai Emery
Having taken charge of more than 1,000 matches over the last 21 years, Unai Emery is one of the most experienced managers currently working in the Premier League.
After a career as a midfielder, mostly playing in the second tier of Spanish football, the Spaniard had a pretty quick transition into management, having suffered a serious knee injury in his early 30s.
He helped the now-defunct Lorca Deportiva to promotion in 2004/05 and got Almería into La Liga for the first time in 2006/07, before an incredible eighth-place finish the following campaign.
In 2008, his exploits saw him move on to Valencia, whom he guided to three straight third-place finishes from 2010 to 2012, before a forgettable six-month spell in Russia with Spartak Moscow.
He returned to Spain in January 2013 and guided Sevilla to three-successive Europa League titles.
Two years and seven trophies with Paris Saint-Germain followed, with Emery then trusted by the Arsenal board to become the successor to Arsène Wenger, which was, to an extent, a poisoned chalice.
The Europa League king guided the Gunners to the final in 2019, where they were beaten by Chelsea in Baku, Azerbaijan, but he was unable to help them finish higher than fifth for the first time in four seasons.
He was dismissed after 18 months in November 2019 and appointed by Villarreal in July 2020, with - you’ve guessed it - a fourth Europa League triumph 10 months later, by way of a penalty shoot-out win over Manchester United in Gdańsk, Poland.
Emery turned down an approach by Newcastle United in November 2021, but came back to England to replace Steven Gerrard at Villa Park in October 2022.
The 53-year-old - who is under contract until the summer of 2029 - is Villa’s longest-serving manager since Martin O’Neill, who left after four years in August 2010.
The Gameplan
With Patrick Rowe, Sky Sports journalist
Sky Sports' Patrick Rowe explains how Aston Villa are likely to set up to face the Bees.
"With Sancho and Elliott in the team, Emery now has extra options to rely on out wide," he explained.
"I would expect the usual formation with one playing off the striker. With the new signings, you might see Donyell Malen shift to that role, or he could stay out wide and allow Rogers or Elliott to have a more flexible role behind the striker.
"With the back four, expect most of the attacking play to come down the left with Lucas Digne or Ian Maatsen.
"The right-back is more defensive in this Villa formation - Emery might even use Lamare Bogarde in that role, with the versatile young defender dropping into a centre-back role while Villa are in possession."
Last starting XI v Everton (4-2-3-1): Martínez; Cash, Konsa, Mings, Digne; Bogarde, Tielemans; McGinn, Rogers, Buendía; Watkins
Read our full interview with Patrick Rowe here
Team news
Andrews: Damsgaard "on the mend"
Keith Andrews provided an update on Mikkel Damsgaard, who missed the Premier League clash against Chelsea through illness, and the fitness of his squad ahead of Tuesday night's Carabao Cup tie.
“[Mikkel] Damsgaard is on the mend. Apart from that, it’s as we were,” said Andrews.
“I have ultimate belief in the squad we have here. It’s difficult to pick the team sometimes; certain positions are very, very close in terms of who gets the nod.
“It’s competition for places and the squad will get utilised. It’s a competition we take very seriously, it’s as simple as that.
“We want to go through, and we’ll pick a team that we believe can beat Villa.”
Match Officials
Brooks to referee his first game of season at Gtech
Referee: John Brooks
Assistants: Tim Wood and Wade Smith
Fourth official: Gavin Ward
John Brooks will take charge of his first game of the season when Brentford face Aston Villa on Tuesday night.
The official refereed 28 games last term - including Newcastle United's Carabao Cup final win over Liverpool - showing 141 yellow cards and one red.
His last Brentford game was almost a year ago, when he was the man in the middle for Tottenham's 3-1 win over the Bees in north London.
Last Meeting
Brentford 1 Aston Villa 0 (Premier League, 23 August 2025)
Brentford faced Aston Villa just over three weeks ago, when Dango Ouattara's debut goal earned the Bees a 1-0 win against Unai Emery's side in the west Londoners' first home game of the 2025/26 Premier League season.
The 23-year-old forward - who signed from Bournemouth over the summer - netted in the 12th minute, which was the difference as Keith Andrews secured his first victory as head coach at Gtech Community Stadium.