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2023/24 English Premier League
Matchday 8
Manchester United v Brentford
Turf Moor
Burnley, England
Saturday, 7 October 2023
Kick-off is at 15h00
Manchester United manager Erik ten Hag will be desperate to halt a two-match losing streak at Old Trafford when Brentford come to town on Saturday, October 7.
The Red Devils delivered another poor performance in front of their home fans as Crystal Palace triumphed 1-0 in the pouring Manchester rain on September 30.
Ten Hag's side have picked up just six points from their last five matches to sit 10th in the standings, nine points adrift of league leaders Manchester City, who suffered their first defeat of the season at the hands of Wolves.
The Eagles (9th) climbed above United, while Chelsea (11th) are breathing down their necks after beating Fulham 2-0 in a West London derby on October 2.
Alamy Stock Photo
The Bees are also struggling for results, having collected only their seventh point in 2023-24 with the 1-1 draw at Nottingham Forest, which arrested a run of two successive defeats.
But Thomas Frank's side haven't won any of their last five matches and find themselves four points above the relegation zone in 14th position, although just two behind United.
Rasmus Hojlund is growing in stature with each game and was United's main threat against Palace, having an effort cleared a meter off the line in the first half before producing a sharp save from Sam Johnstone with his header late on. The Danish striker opened his Red Devils account in the UEFA Champions League and it's only a matter of time before he gets on the scoresheet in the Premier League.
Brentford showed plenty of industry against Forest and created numerous chances before and after Christian Norgaard headed them in front. It was the Dane's first goal of the season he went close on another couple of occasions, but just missed the target as his team had to settle for a share of the spoils.
The Red Devils went unbeaten in 20 league games at home before Brighton ended that impressive run last month and Ten Hag has challenged his players to make the Theatre of Dreams a fortress once more.
"We lost two games [here] in a row in the Premier League now... we have to do better that is definitely the case, but we have to show it, even in our body language," the Dutchman said.
"Old Trafford needs to be a fortress and [we need to show] that you can't get anything here. The only way other teams do that is if we lose.
"We have to do better here. The demand is that we get a row of wins to get into a rhythm. We have to do better than we are doing right now."
Frank is convinced the Bees are heading in the right direction, but acknowledges they're just not getting the rub of the green at the moment following all the VAR drama at the City Ground.
"Right now, we are in a spell where we are struggling to get over the line and get three points," the Dane said. "What we are a big believers in is that, if the performances are good and we are going in the right direction, the points will come.
"If you look at everything, we should have won this game. Leading 1-0, 11 against 10, [Dominguez] scores that header one in 100. After that we should and could have scored, but on the day we just couldn't do it."
Head-to-Head (Previous Premier League Meetings)
Matches - 4
Man United - 3
Brentford - 1
Draws - 0
Premier League Matchday 8 fixtures:
Saturday, October 7
12h30: Luton Town v Tottenham Hotspur
15h00: Burnley v Chelsea
15h00: Everton v Bournemouth
15h00: Fulham v Sheffield United
15h00:
Manchester United v Brentford
17h30: Crystal Palace v Nottingham Forest
Sunday, October 8
14h00: Brighton & Hove Albion v Liverpool
14h00: West Ham United v Newcastle United
14h00: Wolverhampton Wanderers v Aston Villa
16h30: Arsenal v Manchester City
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