Both teams come into this fixture in a good vein of form, with Stoke unbeaten in four and Brentford victorious in their last two outings. 

Stoke's last fixture was an entertaining 2-2 draw at Barnsley on Wednesday, with Tyrese Campbell and Tommy Smith grabbing goals for the Potters.

Stoke had to play the last 30 minutes with 10 men as defender Nathan Collins received a straight red card for a late challenge on Dominik Frieser

Brentford's last fixture was also on Wednesday as the Bees beat Sheffield Wednesday 2-1 at Hillsborough, with Ivan Toney netting twice in the first half. Brentford staved off a late comeback from the hosts which pushes them into 7th, one point away from the play-off places.

  • Pre-match thoughts

Both managers will be looking for a strong performance from their players to maintain steady league starts.

Stoke manager Michael O'Neill has praised Brentford and their journey, stating: ''I think Brentford are a team that have had a lot of admirers, particularly in the last few years after becoming such an established team in the Championship.''

“They’ve certainly impressed in terms of how they have developed players and selling them on for good value for themselves and still be able to push for promotion."

Brentford boss Thomas Frank believes Stoke will provide a challenge for his side, explaining "We would like to finish the week with 9 points but we are going to Stoke and we know it is going to be another extremely tough challenge.''

Stoke may be without Sam Clucas and James McClean after shin and knee injures prevented the pair from playing midweek but will have Collins available after his suspension on Wednesday was overturned. 

Brentford will be without Christian Norgaard and Mads Roerslev, with Pontus Jansson also a doubt after he was forced off at Hillsborough with a hamstring injury.

  • Predicted lineups

Stoke

Davies; Batth, Souttar, Chester, Smith, Mikel, Thompson, Tymon, Powell, Fletcher, Campbell.

Brentford

Raya; Dalsgaard, Sorensen, Pinnock, Henry, Dasilva, Janelt, Jensen, Mbuemo, Ghoddos, Toney.

  • Ones to watch

Stoke - John Obi Mikel

Mikel joined Stoke in the summer on a free transfer after leaving Turkish club Trabzonspor.

The midfielder has gone down well with Stoke fans for his decision making on the ball and the midfield will be crucial to Saturday's fixture.

The 33-year-old will have to be on high alert to disrupt Brentford's quick passing, using all of his experience from 12 years in English football. 

Brentford - Ivan Toney

Toney has been a revelation for Brentford thus far, scoring seven times in his first six games.

The striker looks to be filling the shoes of Ollie Watkins successfully, playing in the centre of a front three that is already free-scoring this season.

Toney will be hungry for more goals, a player that the Stoke defence will have to keep a keen eye out for. 

  • Previous meetings

Recent meetings have been mixed in results, with Stoke winning 1-0 in July courtesy of a Lee Gregory goal.

This result is the only time Stoke have beaten Brentford since the Potters relegation to the Championship in 2018. 

  • How to watch

The game will be available to watch at 3pm on Saturday, with a match pass available to purchase on each team's iFollow accounts for £10 respectively. 

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