Correlation FC

Brentford vs Tottenham, preview

The Bees welcome back Thomas Frank (and several others) who left Brentford for Tottenham in the summer. The game will be played on New Year's Day (evening), so it will naturally will be the first of 2026 for both teams.

Recent history

Spurs beat Bees 2-0 at Tottenham on 6th December. The Bees have not beaten Tottenham at the Gtech, drawing three times and losing the last time they played, back in February 2025. Brentford last beat the Spurs in May 2023.

Recent form

Neither team is in great form, with both picking up only two wins from their last five games. However, both did win their most recent game, with Brentford beating Bournemouth 4-1 and Spurs topping Crystal Palace 1-0. The Bees currently sit in 8th place with 26 points, and Spurs are in 11th with 25 points.

Opta Power Rankings (as of 30th December 2025)

Upcoming milestone

Vitaly Janelt has made 149 appearances in the Premier League for the Bees, a club record. If he makes an appearance against Spurs, he'll hit 150. He's started 4 of the last 5 league games for the Bees.

His role with the club is primarily defensive, but he has scored 9 goals and added 8 assists in the league. He has captained the team 9 times in the Premier League as well. Will Keith Andrews hand him a start and the armband to mark his 150th? Time will tell.

We'll look into more of Janelt's numbers after he officially reaches this impressive milestone.

Nearly at the halfway point

The conclusion of this game will mark the halfway point in the season for the Bees. A scheduling anomaly means that they will have played Spurs twice in the first half-season. The Bees have played all other teams in the league once, with the exception of Everton, who they haven't played yet.

After 18 Premier League matches, the Bees have never had more than their current total of 26 points, but did match this level in their second season in the league, 2022-23.

Brentford's Premier League points after 18 matches (source: Correlation FC)

Card watch

Any players who pick up five yellow cards in the first 19 league games earn themselves a one-game ban. Kevin Schade was recently affected by this.

With the Spurs match being the 19th of the season, there will be a few players trying to be on their best behaviour to make sure they don't pick up a senseless yellow and miss the next game (away at Everton). Both Nathan Collins and Michael Kayode have four yellow cards now.

Spurs have five players sitting on four yellow cards. Xavi Simons will miss the game as he is serving a three-game suspension for the red card he picked up against Liverpool.

Ringing in the new year

The Bees have traditionally fared well in their first game of a new calendar year. This makes it five seasons in a row that their first game of the new year is played at home.

Bees Premier League results in their first home game of a new calendar year (Source: Correlation FC)