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Smith believes his Bees are buzzing
Written by Dan King
Brentford boss Dean Smith admits his team’s performance at St. James’ Park in October was a “disappointment”, and wants the Bees to give a better account of themselves at Griffin Park on Saturday.
Newcastle were comfortable winners on Tyneside earlier in the season as Ciaran Clark opened the scoring and Dwight Gayle netted twice in a 3-1 win.
But Smith thinks his side can make life much more difficult for the Magpies in West London. Brentford are unbeaten in four games in all competitions and were 5-1 winners against Eastleigh in the Emirates FA Cup last weekend.
Speaking to Bees Player ahead of Saturday’s 3pm kick-off, Smith said: “It is a great challenge. I didn’t think we played that well when we went to Newcastle United which was a disappointment.
"It is a game for us now to test our wits. We have hit a recent bit of form: I know it was non-league opposition but we played well and were clinical and we beat Birmingham City quite comfortably the week before.
"We feel that we are in a good place at the moment and the players are looking forward to the game. There is a lot more confidence in what we are doing and how we are doing it.
"The players look confident in executing plans and they look confident in the system that we are playing. They have a great belief in what they are doing now.
"It is a great opportunity for us because it might be a little bit different for a club of Newcastle’s size and stature to come to Griffin Park. What Rafa Benitez has done with Newcastle in the Championship has been admirable. Everybody can point out the quality of their players and the funds and support that they have got but they still need to go and do it right.”
Top scorer Scott Hogan missed Brentford’s win over Eastleigh after suffering a glute injury. However Smith confirmed: “Scott Hogan’s buttock is fine.
“He has trained all week and is available for selection. I fully expect him to want to score a hat-trick against Newcastle United and show people who may question his Premier League credentials that he can do it."
"We feel that we are in a good place at the moment and the players are looking forward to the game. There is a lot more confidence in what we are doing and how we are doing it."