Brentford need to find some impetus late in the season to reignite their European hopes. Desperate to secure Premier League survival, West Ham United are their opponents at the Gtech Community Stadium on Saturday (15:00 BST).
Final home games crucial for Brentford
Defeat to Manchester United on Monday ended Brentford's run of five consecutive draws in the top flight. It's a sequence that has allowed Brighton and AFC Bournemouth to leap ahead of the Bees in the table. Still, Keith Andrews' side go into the weekend fixtures just two points off sixth place.
At the other end of the table, West Ham are keeping their heads above water. They left it late against Everton last time out, though, with Callum Wilson's injury-time winner ensuring Tottenham Hotspur remained in the relegation zone with just four games to play. The gap between the two London rivals is just two points.
A season that promised so much is in danger of ending with a whimper for Brentford, with hopes of European qualification now out of their hands.
The reasons for their poor form are not entirely clear. At times, they have struggled to score goals – most recently in 0-0 draws with Leeds and Fulham – while in other games they have conceded goals, as seen in the 2-1 loss at Manchester United on Monday.
If Brentford are going to get back on track, their final two home games – against West Ham and Crystal Palace – look crucial. Their other two fixtures are away at Manchester City and Liverpool.
Andrews would also be grateful if more players could contribute goals in attack. Aside from Igor Thiago. Kevin Schade has not registered a goal or an assist in his last seven games in all competitions, while Dango Ouattara has gone 10 games without scoring.
Needless to say, Brentford have been heavily reliant on the goalscoring exploits of their Brazilian striker this season. Thiago's 21 goals account for 43% of the team's total league goals — the highest proportion in the Premier League.
Bowen brilliance keeping West Ham afloat
West Ham should be confident given their recent form – they have taken 22 points from their last 13 games – but their record against Brentford leaves a lot to be desired.
They have conceded in all nine of the Premier League games between the two sides since the Bees returned to the top flight. Seven of those nine matches have been defeats for the Hammers too, which is their highest loss rate against any side they've faced five or more times in the competition.
With Brentford in a bit of a rut, this weekend could be a perfect moment for that to change. In Jarrod Bowen, West Ham arguably have one of the in-form forwards in the Premier League.
Bowen set up two more goals against Everton last weekend to take his assist tally to 10 for the season in the top flight. Coupled with his eight goals, only Harry Kane and Mason Greenwood have more goal contributions across European football's top five leagues among English players.
