Key events
Also tonight, we’ve got Southampton v Stoke, while tomorrow we’ve got good sides cutting each other’s throats: Brighton v Liverpool, Newcastle v Arsenal and Spurs v Man City, among other matches.
Frank tells Sky that he’s always trying to find the right balance and pick the right team. He wants rotation and freshness, but also to pick a strong team. and he’s included 10 players who’ve started in the league this season, including several established starters. Er, and that’s it?
Lovely stuff dept: Meghoma and Maghoma are both in the Brentford squad.
While Röhl leaves out Beadle, Palmer, Bernard, Famewo, Valentin, Charles S, Bannan, Windass and Smith, bringing in Charles P, Otegbayo, Iorfa, Fusire, Paterson, Ingelsson, Johnson, Gassama and Ugbo. Or, in other words, he changes everyone bar Lowe M and Musaba. No prizes for guessing where his priorities lie.
Frank leaves out Pinnock, Roerslev, Norgaard, Damsgaard and Wissa, bringing in Mee, Meghoma, Jensen, Carvalho adn Schade.
I’m going to write these down, then we’ll have a think about what they mean.
Teams!
Brentford (4-2-3-1): Flekken; Van den Berg, Collins, Mee, Meghoma; Janelt, Jensen; Carvalho, Lewis-Potter, Schade; Mbuemo. Subs: Valdimarsson, Pinnock, Widssa, Yarmoliuk, Damsgaard, Konak, Trevitt, Roerslev, Maghoma.
Sheffield Wednesday (3-4-2-1): Charles; Lowe, Iorfa, Otegbayo; Johnson, Fusire, Paterson, Ingelsson; Musaba, Gassama; Ugbo. Subs: Hamer, Barrett, Palmer, Bernard, Reed, Windass, Lowe J, McNeill.
Preamble
When any side, doesn’t matter which, meets Brentford, they know one thing for sure: whatever the result, playing them is going to hurt. Thomas Frank’s side are aggressive, attitudinous and organised, so beating them requires major doses of will and skill – whoever the opponent.
All of which should make them a good cup side except, in the three seasons they’ve been a Premier League outfit, they’ve managed just one quarter-final – in the 2021-22 edition of this competition. In fairness to them, Frank has sometimes fielded weakened sides because their priority has always been survival, but given the poverty of the promoted teams and their comfy ninth position, they will surely see tonight as an opportunity. They bloody well should.
Wednesday, meanwhile, lie 13th in the Championship having narrowly escaped relegation last season, their improvement largely down to Danny Röhl – the youngest manager in England before fellow German, Fabian Hürzeler, usurped him. “Very good on the counter and very good at playing direct,” said Frank, presumably aware he could just as easily be describing his own men. “They play early in behind, they have good runners. They have good offensive structure in everything they do. They also have great physicality on their set-pieces”.
And they have Barry Bannan, one of the last midfield schemers who, if he’s at it, will be a problem. Which is to say this match may look like a gimme and maybe that’s how things’ll pan out. But do not be surprised if Wednesday make it nasty – every bit as nasty as Brentford make it for everyone else.
Kick-off: 8pm GMT
