Brentford will be looking to triumph in the Championship for the first time since February 8 when they travel to Cardiff City on Saturday afternoon.
The Bees are currently on a four-game winless run in all competitions but are still fifth in the table, while Cardiff sit 11th having lost their last two to Stoke City and Nottingham Forest.
Match preview
© Reuters
Cardiff picked up seven points from their three matches against Luton Town, Huddersfield Town and Wigan Athletic earlier this month, but Neil Harris's side have lost their last two to Stoke and Forest.
It has been a season of inconsistency for the Welsh outfit, who have a record of 12 wins, 14 draws and nine defeats from their 35 Championship matches during the 2019-20 campaign.
The Bluebirds are currently 11th in the table, six points off sixth-placed Preston North End. A playoff spot is not entirely out of the question, but they will need to start putting victories on the board.
Cardiff have actually lost the same amount of games as third-placed Fulham but have posted a league-high 14 draws, which has stopped them from challenging higher up the table at this stage.
The Welsh outfit have also won three of their last four Championship matches against Brentford, who will be desperate to return to winning ways in England's second tier as soon as possible.
© Reuters
When in full flow, Brentford are arguably the best team to watch in the Championship but that will count for little if they are unable to at least secure a playoff spot come the end of the season.
The Bees have not won in the league since beating Middlesbrough on February 8, drawing three of their fixtures since then before suffering a 2-1 defeat at Luton Town on Tuesday night.
Thomas Frank's side conceded twice in the first half at Kenilworth Road as they suffered a surprising defeat to the division's bottom club.
Brentford are still fifth in the table, although they are only three points clear of seventh-placed Bristol City, meaning that another poor result this weekend could easily see them drop out of the playoffs.
As mentioned above, the Bees have a poor recent record against Cardiff, although they did run out 2-1 winners when the pair locked horns in the reverse match earlier this season.
Cardiff Championship form: DWWDLL
Cardiff form (all competitions): LWWDLL
Brentford Championship form: WWDDDL
Team News
© Reuters
Cardiff will again be without the services of Lee Tomlin, Nathaniel Mendez-Laing and Isaac Vassell through injury, while Matthew Connolly remains a doubt due to illness.
Leandro Bacuna and Danny Ward are both pushing for starts having appeared off the bench against Forest, although the bulk of the XI from Tuesday's clash is expected to be the same.
As for Brentford, key centre-back Pontus Jansson remains a doubt, while Mathias Jensen, Ellery Balcombe, Josh Clarke, Nikos Karelis and Sergi Canos are all still on the sidelines.
There are unlikely to be changes in the final third of the field, while it could be the same back three should Jansson miss out for the Bees once again.
Joel Valencia is an option for change, although the 25-year-old is unlikely to be handed a starting role.
Cardiff possible starting lineup:
Smithies; Sanderson, Morrison, Nelson, Bennett; Pack, Vaulks; Murphy, Paterson, Hoilett; Glatzel
Brentford possible starting lineup:
Raya; Dalsgaard, Norgaard, Pinnock; Rasmussen, Dasilva, Baptiste, Henry; Benrahma, Watkins, Mbeumo
We say: Cardiff 1-2 Brentford
Both teams will be desperate to bounce back from disappointing results during the week, but we fancy Brentford to pick up an important three points. The Bees are certainly due a victory and should have just about enough to beat Harris's team at the Cardiff City Stadium.
