Brentford will be looking to bounce back from their FA Cup penalty shootout heartache when they welcome bottom side Wolverhampton Wanderers to west London on Monday (20:00 GMT).
Dango unblamed
Keith Andrews' side crashed out of the cup at the fifth-round stage against West Ham United, but the head coach was quick to defend Dango Ouattara after the Burkina Faso winger’s attempt at a Panenka failed miserably.
"He practises that technique a lot and will have the utmost support from me and everyone around," said the Irishman. No wonder his side have been running through brick walls for him all season.
The Bees sit seventh, well placed in the hunt for a European spot, largely thanks to 18-goal striker Igor Thiago's blistering form in front of goal. Ouattara has played his part in the support cast, chipping in with five, while Kevin Schade has seven.
Perhaps because of Thiago's style – he's made more runs into the opposition box (151) than any other player in the Premier League this season – Brentford have scored a higher percentage of their goals from inside the penalty area than any other team in the top flight.
After winning seven and losing just one of their first 11 league home games this season, Brentford have since lost two of their past three at Gtech Community Stadium. The Bees haven't suffered successive home league defeats since February 2025.
…And out come the Wolves
It may have taken until March but Wolverhampton Wanderers have finally won back-to-back league games. They have done it the hard way too, defeating two of the top six in Aston Villa and Liverpool, the latter of whom responded by dumping them out of the FA Cup three days later.
While Wolves remain rooted to the bottom and highly likely to go down, those victories have taken them well clear of Derby County’s record for the lowest Premier League points total.
With that particular monkey off their backs, Rob Edwards' side can perhaps attack their remaining eight games of the season with a little less trepidation. A first league away win at the 15th attempt would be a good way to start.
Portuguese wing-back Rodrigo Gomes has emerged as something of a super sub in recent games, coming off the bench to score in those successive wins.
Four of his five league goals for Wolves have come as a substitute, including all three this season. Of all the players who have scored five or more goals in the competition's history, only two have netted a higher share from the bench than Gomes.
A double from Keane Lewis-Potter gave Brentford all three points at Molineux in December. Wolves are winless in their past four against this opposition, shipping 10 goals in the process.
No side at the bottom of the table on each matchday has won three consecutive top-flight games since Leicester City in 2015. If Wolves can match that feat, perhaps they can start dreaming of the great escape…
