Reeling from their worst-ever start to a Premier League season, Manchester United face the disgruntled Old Trafford faithful once again on Saturday, as Brentford head north for a Premier League showdown.
The Red Devils went down 3-2 to Galatasaray in their midweek Champions League affair, while the Bees most recently held out for a 1-1 draw away to Nottingham Forest.
Match preview
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Even star striker Rasmus Hojlund admitted that Man United are in a crisis after the Dane's Champions League brace against Galatasaray was in vain, as a 10-man Red Devils outfit succumbed to a second successive home defeat owing to another catalogue of errors.
Heading into the final 15 minutes level pegging at 2-2, Andre Onana and Casemiro breathed huge sighs of relief when Mauro Icardi sent a penalty wide of the mark - the goalkeeper's awful pass went straight to Dries Mertens, who was felled by Casemiro for the Brazilian's second yellow card - but the Argentine exorcised his 12-yard demons to delicately dink the ball over Onana a few minutes later.
Rock bottom of their Champions League group without a single point to their name and languishing in 10th spot in the Premier League table - having only amassed nine points from a possible 21 so far - murmurings of a managerial change are slowly growing louder, but Ten Hag is believed to still possess the full backing of the hierarchy.
Of course, off-field dramas and an unenviable injury crisis have contributed to Man United's downfall this term, but defensive disasters and questionable recruitment have also played a significant part, and Roy Hodgson outwitted Ten Hag to steer Crystal Palace to a famous Old Trafford win last weekend, where Joachim Andersen's stunner proved decisive.
Five of the hosts' last seven matches in all competitions have now ended in defeat - including three of their last four in the top flight - and Ten Hag could also set another unwanted record this weekend, where Man United are at risk of losing three successive Premier League games at the Theatre of Dreams for the first time ever.
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Seeking to consign the Red Devils to their worst-ever Premier League run at their Old Trafford headquarters is a Brentford side who have endured their own sticky patch of results in recent weeks, having failed to get the better of a 10-man Forest outfit at the City Ground last weekend.
Christian Norgaard headed home from Mathias Jensen's free kick not long after Moussa Niakhate was given his marching orders, but Steve Cooper's depleted troops refused to throw in the towel and levelled through a midfield header of their own, as Nicolas Dominguez directed a looping effort above Mark Flekken's outstretched arm.
September was a truly forgettable month for Thomas Frank's side, who failed to pick up one win across the month and saw their EFL Cup dreams come to an end at the hands of Arsenal, and the Bees now trek to Old Trafford without a triumph in five straight matches - leaving them 14th in the rankings as a result.
However, Brentford can take some solace from the fact that their only Premier League win this season did come on the road against London rivals Fulham, but that 3-0 success also represents their only clean sheet of the season so far in any competition - offering the glass-half-empty Man United crowd a slice of optimism.
Those Red Devils fans will need no reminding of the 4-0 humiliation Brentford inflicted on them in the summer of 2022, but Man United have won both of their Premier League home meetings with the Bees without conceding a goal, most recently succeeding 1-0 in April thanks to a first-half Marcus Rashford effort.
Team News
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Prior to their embarrassing loss at the hands of Galatasaray, Man United confirmed that Lisandro Martinez had exacerbated his previous foot injury, and the Argentine is likely to be out until after the New Year following a second operation.
Martinez joins Amad Diallo (knee), Luke Shaw (muscle), Aaron Wan-Bissaka (thigh), Jadon Sancho (disciplinary), Sergio Reguilon (hamstring) and Tyrell Malacia (knee) on the hosts' absentee list, but Kobbie Mainoo is back in training following a knee injury.
With the visit of the Bees coming too soon for Tottenham Hotspur loanee Reguilon, Sofyan Amrabat will be forced to continue in that unfamiliar position, but Ten Hag could now promote Antony to the starting lineup after the Brazilian earned some minutes as a substitute on Tuesday, having recently been questioned by police over domestic abuse allegations.
As for their visitors, no fresh concerns have arisen from their draw with Forest last weekend, but Frank is also dealing with a concerning number of absentees, including long-term knee victim and rumoured Man United transfer target Rico Henry.
Kevin Schade (groin), Shandon Baptiste (shoulder), Ben Mee (calf), Mikkel Damsgaard (knee) and Josh Dasilva (hamstring) will not be at Frank's disposal either, while Ivan Toney has returned to action behind closed doors, but he still has another three months of his suspension to serve before he graces the Premier League again.
Nevertheless, Frank is blessed with an option for change up top in the form of Neal Maupay - who is threatening to take Keane Lewis-Potter's place - while Aaron Hickey will incur a one-game ban if he is booked here but is seemingly in no danger of losing his spot out wide.
Manchester United possible starting lineup:
Onana; Dalot, Varane, Evans, Amrabat; Casemiro, Mount; Antony, Fernandes, Rashford; Hojlund
Brentford possible starting lineup:
Flekken; Roerslev, Collins, Pinnock, Hickey; Jensen, Norgaard, Janelt; Mbeumo, Maupay, Wissa
We say: Manchester United 2-1 Brentford
Even the most bullish of Man United supporters will head to Old Trafford with a hint of trepidation this weekend, but Saturday's game will present Ten Hag's team with a prime opportunity to get back on track, as an injury-hit Brentford are not the same force they once were.
While the Bees should be backed to end their goalscoring drought on the Red Devils' turf owing to the hosts' defensive frailties, Frank's defence are far from watertight, and we have faith in Man United to avoid making unwanted history and come out on the correct end of the scoreline, however ugly it may be.
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Top tip
Ben Knapton
