Free betting tips: Sky Bet Championship - West Brom v Brentford
The football on Monday night comes from the Sky Bet Championship and Tom Carnduff fancies West Brom for success.
Recommended bets
1pt Harvey Barnes to score anytime at 3/1
1pt Alan Judge to score anytime at 5/1
1pt Henrik Dalsgaard to be shown a card at 11/2
For details of advised bookmakers and each-way terms, visit our transparent tipping record
West Brom v Brentford (Hawthorns, 2000 GMT, Sky Sports Main Event)
They were previous promotion hopefuls, but Brentford's performances in the last couple of months have resulted in them sliding down the table at an alarming rate.
The Bees have lost six of their last seven games and have just one win in 13. Now 18th, they could be just one point off the relegation zone by the time this game comes around.
You'd expect that run to continue at a West Brom outfit who boast the third-best home record in the division - while Brentford have managed to pick up just four points from a possible 27 on the road.
The one bit of confidence that the visitors can potentially carry into this game is that they are scoring goals, which will be necessary against an attacking-minded Baggies outfit.
Thomas Frank's men scored twice at QPR, while hitting three away at Preston and two at Villa back in August, but they still managed just a point from those three matches and that says much about their issues at the back.
Brentford's attacking threat justified taking the 5/1 available on Alan Judge to score anytime on Monday night.
The Bees' wide man, who has two on his tally this season, has only recently gained a starting spot following injuries to Ollie Watkins and Said Benrahma and looks worth following.
He scored when they were in front of the TV cameras last weekend, while a number of key saves from Sheffield United goalkeeper Dean Henderson prevented him from finding the net in midweek.
He has the ability to strike from open play, but he carries a huge threat from dead-ball situations and free-kicks within shooting range, too.
I'd fancy the Bees to score at least once at The Hawthorns given the talent they have within their squad, and Judge looks good - even at a general price of 4/1 - to get himself onto the scoresheet again.
For the hosts, Harvey Barnes has shone throughout his loan spell at the club and has scored seven so far, assisting a further four in all competitions.
His 61 shots on goal is a considerably higher return than any other member of the West Brom squad. Jay Rodriguez's 49 is the closest to challenging him, while Rodriguez's fellow striker Dwight Gayle has only managed 30.
It's also worth remembering that almost half of those shots have come from outside the area, so while the 3/1 for Barnes to score anytime represents good value, the odds will be enhanced when backing him to strike from distance.
He has also played at least 87 minutes in all but one of his last nine league appearances, meaning that he will be on the pitch for the large majority of the game.
On the card front, Darren Bond has shown at least four cards in 50 per cent of his games this season but I'd expect a couple given the disciplinary records of the two sides involved.
One player who could find himself in trouble though is Henrik Dalsgaard, with four yellows to his name already. The full-back has also committed the highest number of fouls in this Brentford squad.
The Danish defender will be dealing with Barnes and Kieran Gibbs on the overlap, while Rodriguez and Gayle also have no issue drifting out wide when required.
Betfair offer the best price at 11/2 for a card to be shown here, but the value will still be there even if it does drop to around the 3/1 mark.
Score prediction: West Brom 3-1 Brentford (Sky Bet odds: 12/1)
Best bets:
Opta facts
- West Brom and Brentford haven’t met since August 2003, when the Baggies won 4-0 in a League Cup match.
- Brentford have lost all nine of their away visits to West Bromwich Albion in all competitions, with this their first league visit since February 1992.
- Since the Championship began in 2004-05, only two sides have scored more goals than West Brom’s 41 after the first 19 games of a season: Wolves (44 in 2008-09) and Southampton (42 in 2011-12); both were promoted to the Premier League.
- Brentford are unbeaten in nine league matches played on a Monday (W3 D6).
- West Brom haven’t won four consecutive league matches since November 2012 in the Premier League.
- Neal Maupay has been directly involved in eight goals (six goals and two assists) in eight away games in the Championship this season.
Odds correct at 1405 GMT (30/11/18)