Brentford hosts Aston Villa, preview
Recent history
The Bees haven't had much recent success against Aston Villa, but will be hoping to change that on Saturday. When they played earlier this season, three early Villa goals put the game quickly out of reach. When Villa visited Brentford last season, the game had some VAR controversy, two red cards, some tomfoolery Emiliano Martinez and Neal Maupay, but most ultimately it was a 2-1 win for Villa as Keane Lewis-Potter's first Premier League goal wasn't enough for the Bees.
Pre-game correlation
Brentford has won more aerial duels than any other team in the Premier League thanks largely to their tall defenders and Kevin Schade. Aston Villa is 18th.
Brentford commits among the fewest fouls in the league, ranked 19th. Villa is near the top. No team has been fouled less than Brentford. No team has been fouled more often than Villa.
Aston Villa makes more subs than almost any other team, and their subs play a league leading average of 25 minutes per appearance. Brentford makes fewer subs than almost any other team, and their subs play a league low average of 16 minutes per appearance.
Correlation FC pre-game predictions
Prediction #1
Brentford will outperform Aston Villa on aerial duels.
Prediction #2
Brentford will finish the game with fewer fouls than Villa, though they will exceed their current season average of 8.9 fouls per game.
Prediction #3
Villa will make more subs than Brentford, and their subs will, on average, play more minutes than Brentford's subs.
Other data stories
Yellow cards
The Bees have been given the lowest number of yellow cards in the league (38), while Villa is near the middle of the pack with 56. However, where Villa seems to shine is in drawing yellow cards, with their opponents picking up a league high of 76 yellows, that's nearly 3 per game. Villa has also been fouled more than any other team. They seem to be skilled in winding up their opponents. Brentford seems to prefer a more mellow affair.
Yellow card and foul comparison (source FBref.com)
| Team | Yellow cards | Opponent yellow cards | Fouls | Opponent fouls |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Aston Villa | 56 (13th) |
76 (1st) |
371 (4th) |
379 (1st) |
| Brentford | 38 (20th) |
56 (12th) |
210 (19th) |
254 (20th) |
Yellow shirts
Mark Flekken and Hakon Valdimarsson have worn three different GK kit colours this season – blue, green and yellow. Their results to date:
Brentford goalkeeping kit colour comparison (source FBref.com)
| GK kit colour | Games | Wins | Draws | Losses | Points per game |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Blue | 8 | 6 | 0 | 2 | 2.25 |
| Green | 3 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0.00 |
| Yellow | 16 | 5 | 5 | 6 | 1.31 |
While the yellow kit seems to be preferred, the best results this season have come in blue.
Watkins and Wissa
While former Bee Ollie Watkins and current Bee Yoane Wissa didn't ever play together at Brentford, the two strikers' numbers seem almost inseparable this year. They are neck and neck in quite a few different areas.
Watkins and Wissa similarities (source FBref.com)
| Category | Watkins | Wissa |
|---|---|---|
| Goals | 12 | 13 |
| Expected goals (xG) | 13.3 | 13.1 |
| Shots on target | 28 | 28 |
| Progressive carries | 40 | 40 |
| Pass completion % | 76% | 77% |
| Shot creating actions | 44 | 44 |
| Aerial duels won | 46% | 46% |
| Offsides | 9 | 10 |
| Interceptions | 6 | 6 |
| Playing time (minutes) | 1,965 | 1,930 |
| Age | 28 | 27 |
If that's where they're similar, where do we see differences? Watkins plays as more of a target man for his teammates, a role that Wissa plays at times. That said, Watkins has picked up several assists to his teammates playing out on the left wing. Wissa is willing to drop deep to receive the ball and is skilled at progressive passing as well. Wissa seems to be a bit more willing to defend, with a greater number of tackles and blocks.
Watkins and Wissa differences (source FBref.com)
| Category | Watkins | Wissa |
|---|---|---|
| Attacking | ||
| Shot on target % | 42% | 48% |
| Passes completed | 237 | 324 |
| Progressive passing distance (yards) | 475 | 1,087 |
| Assists | 6 | 2 |
| Crosses | 7 | 18 |
| Goal creating actions | 10 | 6 |
| Progressive passes received | 123 | 108 |
| Fouls drawn | 27 | 35 |
| Defending | ||
| Tackles won | 1 | 6 |
| Blocks | 11 | 20 |
This story was published on 05 March 2025. It was written by Dennis Flood. The image at the top of this story was generated using AI.
