Brentford face west London rivals Fulham at Craven Cottage in the Premier League on Saturday evening (8pm kick-off BST), live on Sky Sports.
The Bees claimed a late 2-2 draw against Chelsea last weekend before progressing to round four of the Carabao Cup with a 4-2 penalty shoot-out victory over Aston Villa in midweek.
A stoppage-time Gabriel Gudmundsson own goal saw the Cottagers defeat Leeds United 1-0 at home in their last outing.
Analysis, team news, match officials and more. Here's everything you need to know before kick-off.
Pre-match analysis
Stephen Gillett, Playmaker Stats: Expect early and late drama
Brentford were defeated by a Harry Wilson double last time they made the short trip to Craven Cottage - and the Bees need to keep their guard up this weekend when they take on Fulham under the lights.
Leading through a Vitaly Janelt strike, Brentford were on course for a 1-0 away win in that game, only for Welsh winger Wilson to conjure up two injury-time strikes to snatch a 2-1 win for Marco Silva's side.
Fresh from landing a late sucker punch of their own against Chelsea last weekend, Brentford will be out for revenge in their latest west London derby and they enter Saturday's contest buoyed by a dramatic penalty shoot-out triumph over Aston Villa in the Carabao Cup in midweek.
The hosts will be a tough nut to crack, however, and last season’s data clearly shows that the Cottagers possess an enviable knack of turning games on their head.
No team came from behind to win more Premier League games last season than Fulham (6) and their strength in depth off the bench was a considerable factor.
Last term, the Cottagers scored more goals via substitutes (17) than any team in the top flight and, in Rodrigo Muniz, they have arguably the league's stand-out 'game changer'.
Muniz impressively netted six of his eight Premier League goals last season as a sub, and the Brazilian notched off the bench to salvage a point against Brighton in Fulham's opening game of the current campaign.
Last term, only Bournemouth (9) scored more stoppage-time goals than Fulham (7) and that trend has continued this season with two of the Cottagers' three Premier League strikes coming after 90 minutes.
An intriguing tactical encounter lies in store. Still to score from open play themselves this season, Fulham will certainly be alert to Brentford’s set-piece threat, particularly given the column inches generated by Fábio Carvalho's equaliser from a long throw against Chelsea last weekend.
Interestingly, though, the early-season statistics suggest the Bees are adding fresh layers to their game under Andrews.
The contrast between Brentford's dribbling statistics this season and last offers one such example. Last season, Brentford ranked among the bottom five clubs in the Premier League for successful dribbles, but a snapshot of their statistics this term shows that only three clubs in the division (Arsenal, Tottenham and Man City) have averaged more than the Bees (8.5) per game.
It is telling that both Michael Kayode (8) and Rico Henry (6) rank in the Premier League's top 20 for successful take-ons in 2025/26, and, with midweek goal hero Aaron Hickey also back in the frame, Brentford have progressive options at full-back.
Given the Bees’ penchant for early goals last season and Fulham's fancy for late drama, Saturday's clash is definitely one to watch from beginning to end!
Scout Report
Dan Long, Sky Sports: Fulham have "exciting new look"
Even though Fulham completed a west London derby double over Brentford with a 3-2 win on the penultimate weekend of 2024/25, a final day defeat to Manchester City scuppered their hopes of a top-half finish and a club-record 16th Premier League win of the season.
"It was definitely not the way we wanted to end the season at all," said Marco Silva afterwards. "It hurts a little bit to not finish in the top half of the table."
His disappointment was easy to understand, given the Whites had been sat in eighth, ninth or 10th for the bulk of the season, even in spite of the fact they failed to record back-to-back wins after 15 February.
There was one huge positive, though; one that the Portuguese will have looked back on with pride after that initial emotion had worn off - the fact his side collected 54 points. No Fulham side had ever picked up as many across 18 seasons in the competition.
A simple fact about football supporters is that summer signings keep them happy - and a touch of the Fulham fans' contentment from last term no doubt waned when the 2025/26 season started and the only addition was 34-year-old goalkeeper Benjamin Lecomte, who joined on a two-year deal for a modest fee.
There was no sign of movement after Rodrigo Muniz scored a 97th-minute equaliser to secure a 1-1 draw at Brighton on the opening day, nor after Emile Smith Rowe earned a draw by the same scoreline against Manchester United eight days later, nor after the comprehensive 2-0 win over Bristol City in the Carabao Cup second round.
But after a 2-0 west London derby defeat to Chelsea just before the international break - during which VAR decisions took centre stage - on Deadline Day, the recruitment drive got into full swing.
Winger Samuel Chukwueze arrived from AC Milan and striker Jonah Kusi-Asare joined from Bayern Munich, both on season-long loans. And the pair were joined by Brazilian winger Kevin, who signed from Shakhtar Donetsk for a club-record fee.
Marco Silva's team has an exciting new look now - and any discontent from the summer seems to have evaporated as a result.
The period between the September and October international breaks can almost be treated as a new start.
On another note, Fulham have competed in Europe before. They reached the third round of the UEFA Cup under Jean Tigana in 2002/03, finished as runners-up in the Europa League under Roy Hodgson in 2009/10, then exited at the group stages of the same competition under Martin Jol in 2011/12.
Since then, they have been relegated three times and bounced back three times. But having now re-established themselves as a mid-table Premier League side, the natural next step surely has to be aiming for a return to European competition in 2026.
In the Dugout
Marco Silva
Marco Silva passed 13 years in management earlier this month and has now taken charge of over 500 matches in Portugal, Greece and the UK.
After a playing career as a right-back in his home country, the Portuguese was appointed director of football at Estoril in 2011, but was quickly thrust into his first role as leading man when the club endured an unfavourable start to the campaign and Vinícius Eutrópio was sacked.
Silva managed to turn the club’s fortunes around, winning the Liga de Honra - Portugal’s second tier - and cementing a return to the Primeira Liga after a seven-year exile.
In 2014, Silva signed a four-year deal at Sporting CP and went on to win the Taça de Portugal – the Portuguese Cup - but he lasted just over a year in charge.
Shortly after the cup win, the club produced a 400-page document where they detailed the reasoning for his dismissal, with one section claiming his failure to wear a club suit during a match partly justified the decision.
A title-winning season at Olympiacos came next, before he took on a fire-fighting job at relegation-threatened Hull in January 2017.
Silva galvanised a Tigers team that included Harry Maguire and Andy Robertson, but ultimately could not prevent the club from dropping back into the Championship, and he resigned just under five months later.
That preceded time at Watford and Everton, before he joined Fulham as their new head coach in July 2021. He won the Championship title with the club in 2021/22, before guiding them to their first top-half Premier League finish since 2011/12 in 2022/23.
Silva reached four years in the job two months ago, and is now the club’s longest-serving manager since Alec Stock, who left the role in December 1976.
He is also currently the sixth-longest serving manager in the top four divisions of English football.
The Gameplan
With Jack Kelly of the Fulhamish podcast
Jack Kelly of the Fulhamish podcast has explained how Fulham boss Marco Silva is likely to set up his side for Saturday's west London derby.
"It will be a 4-3-3 or 4-2-3-1. There is a chance Fulham go to a back five, but I do not think that will happen," Kelly told us in an interview this week.
"That was more of an approach we took based on Manchester United’s system and Chelsea away, which is a tough fixture and one where it is good to have an extra body in defence.
"So, I think it will be the same sort of formation, with players who hurt Brentford last season potentially involved again, like Harry Wilson, but also Kevin and maybe Chukwueze."
Last Premier League starting XI v Leeds United (4-2-3-1): Leno; Tete, Andersen, Bassey, Sessegnon; Lukić, Berge; Wilson, King, Iwobi; Muniz
Team News
Ajer fit for west London derby
Brentford has issued an update on Kristoffer Ajer, Jordan Henderson, Paris Maghoma, Gustavo Nunes, Ethan Pinnock and Igor Thiago ahead of Saturday’s Premier League game against Fulham.
Henderson, Pinnock and Thiago were part of a training group on Tuesday; all three players are available for selection.
Ajer came off against Aston Villa as a precaution due to a contact to the knee but has avoided injury and is in contention for Fulham.
Maghoma is building his running fitness, and Nunes will be in modified training for the next two weeks while he also builds his fitness.
Match Officials
Michael Oliver the man in the middle at Craven Cottage
Referee: Michael Oliver
Assistants: Stuart Burt and James Mainwaring
Fourth official: Simon Hooper
VAR: Jarred Gillett
Michael Oliver has refereed eight matches this season, producing 18 yellow cards and one red.
His most recent Brentford assignment was the Bees’ goalless draw with Chelsea in April.
Memorable Meeting
Fulham 0 Brentford 3 (Premier League, 19 August 2023)
Bryan Mbeumo scored twice as Brentford secured the derby day bragging rights with a 3-0 victory over Fulham at Craven Cottage.
Yoane Wissa capitalised on an Issa Diop mistake to give the Bees the lead late in the first half.
He was involved again just past the hour, winning the penalty which saw Mbeumo make it two.
Fulham captain Tim Ream was sent off in that incident and the Bees netted a third against the 10 men in stoppage-time when Mbeumo finished off a flowing counter attack in front of the jubilant away fans.