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Match Preview: Brentford v Sunderland
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- Match Preview: Brentford v Sunderland
Match Preview: Brentford v Sunderland
Brentford host Sunderland at Gtech Community Stadium in the Premier League on Saturday afternoon (3pm kick-off BST).
Keith Andrews' side have picked up four points from their opening two fixtures of 2026/27, while the Black Cats got on the board with a 1-0 victory against Fulham last weekend.
Analysis, team news, match officials and more - here's everything you need to know ahead of the game.
Pre-match analysis
Stephen Gillett, Playmaker Stats: Sunderland's success built on stubborn defence
Still unbeaten this season, Brentford take on Régis Le Bris' Sunderland in the Premier League this Saturday - and Keith Andrews has some interesting tactical questions to weigh up.
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The Black Cats were one of the surprise packages of the 2025/26 campaign, finishing a sensational season in seventh to qualify for the Europa League.
The third-lowest scorers in the Premier League last term, Sunderland's success was built largely on their defensive qualities. Le Bris' side conceded just 48 goals - the fourth-best record in the division - and excelled at limiting the quality of their opponents' chances.
Remarkably, Opta 's Expected Points model suggested Sunderland 'should' have been relegated based on the underlying numbers, but such metrics only tell part of the story.
Sunderland conceded just 0.11 Expected Goals (xG) per shot last term, the joint-lowest figure in the Premier League alongside champions Arsenal, and the early indications are that they have doubled down defensively so far in 2026/27.
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Only Arsenal (one) have conceded fewer shots on target than Sunderland (three) across the opening two games of the campaign, numbers which make Saturday's meeting particularly intriguing given Brentford's impressive attacking start to the new season.
The Bees have played some fantastic front-foot football in their opening two league fixtures, and only Manchester United (27) currently average more shots per 90 minutes than Brentford (24).
Kevin Schade , who scored a delightful flick at Elland Road last weekend, leads the way with eight attempts on goal, closely followed by Igor Thiago on seven.
Le Bris' side are comfortable soaking up pressure in a compact block, but they are far from passive. Sunderland can press aggressively from the front and currently rank eighth in the Premier League for pressed sequences, with the Frenchman, much like Andrews, willing to tailor his approach according to the opposition and game state.
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Despite having home advantage, Brentford could therefore see value in occasionally conceding territory themselves and inviting Sunderland forward.
The Bees were devastating on the break last season, particularly during the opening months of the campaign, and no Premier League side scored more than their nine counter-attacking goals. Sunderland, meanwhile, were caught on the counter seven times over the course of the season.
Andrews, however, may be reluctant to move away from the aggressive style of play that has served his side so well thus far.
Mamadou Sangaré and Vitaly Janelt have been outstanding at the base of Brentford's midfield and both currently rank among the Premier League's top 20 players for tackles won, while Janelt leads the division with eight interceptions.
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With their mobile forwards also mucking in, the Bees have repeatedly won the ball in dangerous areas. In fact, Brentford lead the Premier League for high turnovers ending in a shot (seven), with 31 per cent of their high regains resulting in an attempt on the opposition goal.
Against a Sunderland side so adept at maintaining its defensive shape, Brentford's challenge will be to find ways to disrupt their visitors' successful formula. An aggressive press at the right times will surely have an important part to play, but so too will patience in possession.
Scout report
Dan Long, Sky Sports: Premier League remains Black Cats' priority
Before a ball was kicked in 2025/26, newly-promoted Sunderland were being tipped to finish bottom of the Premier League. In 66.4 per cent of Opta Analyst 's simulations, they were relegated. It was not quite the welcome back they would have envisaged after eight seasons away.
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It is unlikely number-crunching alone would have provided fuel to tackle the season head on, but the Black Cats started to prove the doubters wrong from the opening day. They went into the November international break in fourth after a 2-2 draw at home to Arsenal.
The opening four months of 2026 did not go quite as smoothly, though 18 points from 16 games was still not to be sniffed at. Perhaps that was always going to happen anyway, given the rigours of the league, particularly once the initial bounce had faded.
No team has ever been relegated with 43 points, and Régis Le Bris' side hit that on 22 March, with a 2-1 Tyne-Wear derby win over Newcastle at St James' Park, which would no doubt have made the achievement taste all the sweeter. With that target met, it was all about finishing as strongly as possible and seeing where that could take them.
Going into the final day visit of Chelsea, there was still work to do if Sunderland were to achieve the previously unthinkable and qualify for Europe. But they beat the Blues 2-1 and results elsewhere meant they finished seventh - their joint highest position ever in the Premier League - and qualified for the Europa League.
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It was the first time Sunderland had secured a place in European competition since 1973, when they qualified for the UEFA Cup Winners' Cup after beating Leeds in the 1972/73 FA Cup final. "This 24 May, it's a perfect day," Le Bris said afterwards.
According to Sky Sports ' transfer figures, Sunderland were the seventh-biggest spenders in the Premier League last summer and had the fifth-biggest net spend. The team needed to be revamped to ensure they gave themselves a fighting chance of survival.
Having achieved that target and then some, as Sunderland Echo 's Phil Smith said earlier this week, allowing the squad to enjoy the fruits of their labour in taking on the next challenge was imperative.
Thomas Meunier, Dayann Methalie and Jules Ahoka have joined, while the seven players they have sold played 24 league games between them in 2025/26. By moving those players on, the club have recouped in excess of £30m.
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As ever, when a team outside the traditional top six qualifies for Europe, the question is raised about whether they can balance the additional requirements. In the Europa League league phase alone, Sunderland will play eight more games than usual. When West Ham United won the Conference League in 2022/23, they played 13 extra games and survived by only six points.
And that is just it. The adventure that is about to begin is one generations of Sunderland fans have dreamed about, but staying in the Premier League - and thus further chances of reaching Europe again - has to be the priority. Anything else will be a very welcome bonus.
In the Dugout
Régis Le Bris
Régis Le Bris had a low-key playing career as a defender between 1994 and 2003, playing for Rennes and Laval in France and Ronse in neighbouring Belgium. He played for France up to U17 level, too, and retired at the age of just 27.
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The Frenchman was a qualified coach by the following year and, in 2006, received his doctorate in sports physiology and biomechanics. He went on to return to Rennes, where he stayed until 2012 in a coaching capacity, before moving on to Lorient.
He was Les Merlus' head of youth development for three years, then replaced Franck Haise as Lorient B chief. In 2021/22 - Le Bris' final campaign in charge - he guided the team to second place in the Championnat National 2 - Group A. Once he had completed his UEFA Pro Licence, he was appointed as the club's first-team head coach in June 2022.
Lorient finished 10th in Ligue 1 in 2022/23, but 17th in 2023/24, which resulted in relegation to Ligue 2 after four seasons in the top flight. Le Bris left the club by mutual consent in June 2024 and signed a three-year deal at Sunderland the very same day. After guiding the Black Cats to promotion back to the Premier League, he signed a fresh three-year deal in August, which runs until the summer of 2028.
The Gameplan
With Phil Smith, Sunderland Echo
Sunderland Echo writer Phil Smith outlines how the Black Cats are likely to approach Saturday's visit to west London.
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"The closest formation would probably be a 4-2-3-1, but it is a little bit lopsided," he told brentfordfc.com .
"At the moment, the right winger very much drifts in field to play almost as an extra central midfielder and you will see, whether it is Nordi Mukiele or Thomas Meunier, come forward from right-back to play almost as a winger, so the winger will drift in field, and the full-back will crash on.
"Other than that, it is a fairly traditional system. Granit Xhaka is the holding midfielder, Enzo Le Fée is the no.10."
Last Premier League starting XI v Fulham (4-2-3-1):Roefs; Meunier, Mukiele, Ballard, Reinildo; Xhaka, Sadiki; Hume, Le Fée, Angulo; Brobbey
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Match Officials
Bramall in charge at the Gtech
Referee:Thomas Bramall
Assistants:Gary Beswick and Craig Taylor
Fourth official:Lewis Smith
VAR:Timothy Wood
Thomas Bramall will oversee Brentford's game against Sunderland on Saturday afternoon.
The Sheffield-born referee was in charge for the opening fixture of the Premier League season as champions Arsenal kicked off the 2026/27 campaign with a 3-0 win against newly-promoted Coventry City.
Last term, he dished out 122 yellow cards and four reds in 30 matches across all competitions.
Team news
Jensen sidelined for Sunderland visit
Mathias Jensen will miss Saturday's game at the Gtech.
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The midfielder was absent for last weekend's game against Leeds United and will remain unavailable due to a minor issue.
"No, he won't be back," head coach Keith Andrews confirmed. "He has a little issue. He'll miss this week and possibly next week.
"We'll see how he settles over the next couple of weeks. It's nothing serious, but he certainly won't be available for tomorrow."
Josh Dasilva, Sepp van den Berg and Antoni Milambo are also sidelined.
Read Keith Andrews' squad update here
Last meeting
Brentford 3 Sunderland 0 (Premier League, 7 January 2026)
Igor Thiago set the record for the most goals scored by a Brazilian in a Premier League season, as his brace fired Brentford to a phenomenal 3-0 win against Sunderland at the start of 2026.
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Thiago's 15th and 16th goals of the season were added to by Yehor Yarmoliuk , who scored his first goal in a Bees shirt.
Another Caoimhín Kelleher penalty save from an Enzo Le Fée Panenka also played a pivotal role in securing the three points, which took the west Londoners up to fifth in the Premier League table.
