This is an Athletic piece, so paywalled. TL;DR: Jay Harris makes a case for the following:

• Brentford was unusually disjointed by injuries in this fixture last season, especially missing Norgaard
• Wissa/Schade might be the better pairing up front in the expected 3-5-2 formation
• Ajer’s speed from centerback could make him worth starting over one of Pinnock/Collins/Mee in this matchup.

Brentford have been outplayed by Newcastle across their four EPL fixtures coming into this one, but not by anywhere near the margin the final scorelines and lack of points would suggest. For instance, they created superior chances in the Newcastle home match last season, with an xG edge of 1.8 (plus a penalty) to 1.3.

I’ll admit an intense distaste for Newcastle ever since their purchase, so I’ll be extremely disappointed if we come away with no points here.