Brentford V Aston Villa at Griffin Park : Match Preview

24 December 2017 14:01
Brentford to monitor Vibe's fitness ahead of Villa visit

Brentford will monitor the fitness of striker Lasse Vibe ahead of the home clash with Aston Villa.

Vibe scored both goals in the Bees' 2-1 win over Norwich on Friday night on his return from a hamstring injury, but the Dane left the action after 54 minutes to be replaced by Neal Maupay.

Boss Dean Smith made five changes for the game at Carrow Road, with Chris Mepham, Florian Jozefzoon, Kamohelo Mokotjo and Nico Yennaris all coming into the starting line-up.

It remains to be seen if Smith sticks with a winning line-up or opts to make sweeping changes once again.

Aston Villa boss Steve Bruce will make changes, although he remains without defensive stalwarts John Terry and Chris Samba.

Bruce said after Saturday's 2-2 home draw with Sheffield United that he will look to freshen up his team against the Bees, which could mean a first start since September for Gabriel Agbonlahor.

The striker had been sidelined for three months due to a calf injury before returning as a substitute at Derby last week. He also made a 20-minute appearance from the bench on Saturday.

On-loan Tottenham midfielder Josh Onomah (foot) is fit again and could return to the squad but Samba continues to struggle with the problem that has ruled him out of the last two matches and Terry's broken metatarsal will keep him on the sidelines.

Source: PAR