Bournemouth vs Brentford Preview: Team News & Prediction

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These are two of the more entertaining teams to watch in the Premier League as they both chase European qualification this season, albeit potentially different levels of competition.
Kick-off date/time: Saturday 15th March, 2025: UK – 5:30pm / US ET – 1:30pm / US PT – 10:30am
How to watch on TV: UK – Sky Sports / US – Not televised
How to watch online: UK – Sky Go / US – Peacock
Bournemouth Preview: Cherries chasing UCL
AFC Bournemouth are still in contention for a top five spot in the Premier League and potential UEFA Champions League qualification with the Cherries enjoying an excellent campaign, which includes an FA Cup quarter-final against Manchester City in a couple of weeks.
However, they were left frustrated last weekend as they shared a 2-2 draw with Tottenham Hotspur at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in a game in which they dominated and were 2-0 up before a couple of Kepa Arrizabalaga errors allowed Spurs to earn themselves a point.
Brentford Preview: Bees cling on to UECL hopes
Thomas Frank and his Brentford side began with fairly easy games at home and extremely tough games away from home so their form reflected that and that has now very much flipped on its head with the Bees now quite strong on the road but struggling for results at home.
One of those struggles came last weekend as they welcomed an inconsistent Aston Villa side to the Gtech Community Stadium. They suffered a 1-0 loss in that game against the Villains with former Brentford striker Ollie Watkins notching a second-half winner.
Bournemouth Team News: Zabarnyi returns
Andoni Iraola has confirmed that Bournemouth are blessed with no fresh injury concerns ahead of the visit of Brentford. The hosts are also able to welcome Ukraine international centre-back Illya Zabarnyi back from a three-match suspension, whilst both Marcos Senesi and Julian Araujo have returned to training.
Predicted XI (4-2-3-1): Kepa; Cook, Zabarnyi, Huijsen, Kerkez; Christie, Adams; Tavernier, Kluivert, Semenyo; Evanilson
Unavailable: Senesi (Fitness), Smith (Injured), Araujo (Fitness), Unal (Injured)
Questionable:
Brentford Team News: Kayode & Carvalho out
In his pre-match press conference, Thomas Frank has confirmed that on-loan defender Michael Kayode is dealing with a minor injury so will miss this one. Fabio Carvalho is also unavailable and that is expected to be longer term with Kayode expected to return after the March international break.
Predicted XI (4-2-3-1): Flekken; Ajer, Collins, Pinnock, Lewis-Potter; Norgaard, Janelt; Mbeumo, Damsgaard, Schade; Wissa
Unavailable: Hickey (Fitness), Kayode (Injured), Henry (Fitness), Dasilva (Injured), Carvalho (Injured), Nunes (Injured), Thiago (Injured)
Questionable: Van den Berg (Injured)
Bournemouth vs Brentford Prediction
AFC Bournemouth have endured a dip in form in the Premier League with just one victory in their last five matches in the league. However, they are just three points off the top five ahead of this weekend, whilst Brentford sit behind the top eight – which is expected to be enough for UEFA Europa Conference League football. Both sides press high and seek to force the opposition into mistakes. That means it could end up being a game full of a fair bit of intensity but lacking general goal threat with a low-scoring affair actually a good value bet given their respective records.
Bournemouth vs Brentford Tip: Under 3.5 goals