Brentford-Bournemouth Preview

Ahead of their match against Bournemouth, Brentford head coach Thomas Frank has implored Ivan Toney to "prove people wrong" after the striker's England disappointment.

Toney was called up to the England squad for the first time for the recent Nations League fixtures but failed to get on the pitch in either of the games against Italy and Germany.

He earned that call-up by scoring five times already for the Brentford this season, with the Bees enjoying a similarly impressive start to the campaign.

And Frank wants the 26-year-old to kick on from that setback.

"(Toney) wanted to play. I wanted him to play," Frank told reporters ahead of Saturday's game. "Brentford fans, all of us hoped he came on the pitch but it's Gareth's (Southgate) decision.

"It is a minor setback, a minor disappointment but you need to move forward and just prove people wrong by performing well and that's the only thing he can do."

Saturday's opponents Bournemouth sit 12th in the Premier League, still without a head coach after Scott Parker was dismissed following the 9-0 defeat to Liverpool at Anfield.

The Cherries will remain without captain Lloyd Kelly against Brentford after injuring himself in the build-up to the 1-1 draw away at Newcastle United, though interim boss Gary O'Neil hopes his side can cope without their skipper.

"Everyone needs to play their part in making sure the group is in the right place," O'Neil told reporters. "Although the captain sets that off for you, we're fortunate that the lads all drive each other really well.

"Captaincy is important, but the mentality and intensity of the group is the key driver really."

Bournemouth – Philip Billing

Since the start of the 2020-21 season, the midfielder has been directly involved in 34 league goals for Bournemouth (20 goals, 14 assists). He is an integral player for the Cherries, and Brentford will have to keep a close eye on him if they are to get a result.

Brentford – Ivan Toney

The striker returned from his first international break without getting on the pitch for England. He will look to bounce back from that setback by getting on the scoresheet here for his club side.

- This will be the first top-flight meeting between Bournemouth and Brentford, making it the 109th fixture to have been played in each of the top four tiers of English league football.

- Brentford have conceded 12 goals in their opening seven Premier League games this season, double the amount they had shipped after as many games in 2021-22 (six). Meanwhile, the Bees are on a run of 19 Premier League away games without a clean sheet, the longest such run among current top-flight sides.

- There have been 27 goals scored in Brentford's seven Premier League matches so far this season (scored 15, conceded 12), only Leicester City (32) and Manchester City (29) have seen more in their games in 2022-23.

- Only Tottenham (78) have allowed more high turnovers against them than both Bournemouth (76) and Brentford (61) in the Premier League this season, while only Nottingham Forest (15) have conceded more shots from high turnovers than the Bees (14).

- After beating Aston Villa 2-0 in their opening game, Bournemouth have failed to score in either of their last two home league games. They have never gone three in a row without scoring at home in the Premier League.

Updated September 30, 2022