Brentford vs Swansea City prediction, preview, team news and more | EFL Championship playoff final 2020-21
Swansea City and Brentford travel to the iconic Wembley Stadium for the EFL Championship playoff final on Saturday.
Brentford overturned a 1-0 semi-final first-leg deficit against Bournemouth with a commanding 3-1 win at the Brentford Community Stadium on Saturday. Swansea City recorded a 1-0 away win to secure their place in the final after holding Barnsley to a 1-1 draw in the first leg.
This will be the second consecutive meeting between the two sides in the playoffs. The sides met in the semi-finals last season and Brentford secured passage into the final with a 3-2 win on aggregate.
Also See: 10 best forwards in La Liga this season (2020-21)
Brentford vs Swansea City Head-to-Head
The two clubs have squared off 90 times across all competitions and this will be their third meeting in the Championship playoffs. The two sides have been evenly matched in their meetings and Swansea have a slight upper hand, with 34 wins.
Brentford have recorded 32 wins while the spoils have been shared 24 times between them. In both encounters this season, the teams secured 1-1 draws.
Brentford form guide in Championship: W-L-W-W-W
Swansea City form guide in Championship: D-W-L-W-D
Brentford vs Swansea City Team News
Brentford
The Bees have a couple of injury concerns for the showdown. Josh Dasilva has been ruled out with a hip injury while Shandon Baptiste is a long-term absentee with a knee injury.
Rico Henry and Christian Norgaard missed the second-leg tie against Bournemouth and are doubtful for the final. Henry had just returned from an injury spell and will be assessed before the game. Norgaard picked up a knock in the training sessions and faces a late fitness test.
Injured: Josh Dasilva, Shandon Baptiste
Doubtful: Rico Henry, Christian Norgaard
Suspended: None
Swansea City
The Swans won't be able to call upon the services of Brandon Cooper, Tivonge Rushesha, Steven Benda and Jordan Morris on account of injuries.
Veteran striker Wayne Routledge picked up an ACL injury in the second-leg tie against Barnsley and is likely to be ruled out for the remainder of 2021. Ollie Cooper was also injured in training and won't make the trip to London.
Injured: Brandon Cooper, Tivonge Rushesha, Steven Benda, Jordan Morris, Wayne Routledge, Ollie Cooper
Suspended: None
Brentford vs Swansea City Predicted XI
Brentford Predicted XI (3-4-1-2): David Raya; Pontus Jansson, Christian Norgaard, Ethan Pinnock; Mads Roerslev Rasmussen, Vitaly Janelt, Mathias Jensen, Sergi Canos; Tariqe Fosu-Henry; Marcus Forss, Ivan Toney
Swansea City Predicted XI (4-3-3): Freddie Woodman; Kyle Naughton, Ben Cabango, Marc Guehi, Jake Bidwell; Conor Hourihane, Matt Grimes, Jay Fulton; Jamal Lowe, Liam Cullen, AndrΓ© Ayew
Brentford vs Swansea City Prediction
Brentford have been one of the most entertaining sides to watch in the Championship this season. They have scored a league-best 79 goals and also have the fourth-best defensive record in the league. Swansea, on the other hand, have scored 56 goals and conceded 39.
This will essentially be an away game for both sides. On their travels, the West London side have a better record, scoring more goals and earning more points than the Welsh club.
The game should make for an exciting contest and we expect Brentford to come away with a win due to their superior goal-scoring form.
Prediction: Brentford 2-1 Swansea City