Brentford were tipped to struggle by some pundits this season, but sit a point ahead of Newcastle prior to their clash on Sunday (14:00 GMT). BBC Sport looks at some of the key talking points surrounding this game.
Goals galore
When these two meet there are always goals and it should come as no surprise that Brentford won 5-2 in their first-ever meeting with Newcastle in 1934.
The emphatic victory for the Bees at St James’ Park helped Harry Curtis’s side clinch the old Second Division title that season and the result set the tone for years to come.
No Premier League fixture that has been played at least eight times has produced more goals than this one. A total of 33 have been scored across the past eight top-flight meetings between the clubs at an average of 4.1 per game.
Striker Igor Thiago is responsible for six Premier League strikes for Brentford this season, with three of those coming in his past three top-flight home appearances.
Brentford’s Brazilian top scorer has commanded a lot of attention for his recent performances, but Kevin Schade’s excellent form also hasn’t gone unnoticed and he has earned a recall to Germany’s squad for the forthcoming international break. His last cap came more than a year ago.
Both of Schade’s league goals this season have come at the Gtech Community Stadium and he scored in Brentford’s last home fixture – a 3-2 win over defending champions Liverpool.
Travel-sick Newcastle
Newcastle’s only away win this season was an emphatic one in the Champions League against Belgian side Union Saint-Gilloise.
Their impressive 4-0 victory in Brussels at the start of October appeared a turning point, but they have lost at both Brighton and West Ham in the league since.
Defeat on Sunday would be the first time they have suffered three successive away losses in the top flight since a run of five between November 2023 and January 2024.
“For whatever reason we have not been winning the games away from home that we should have,” said Howe this week. “Now we’re sort of caught in that trap where it’s becoming a topic of conversation and we’re probably becoming more aware of it.”
The Magpies are in fact winless in their past eight away Premier League matches (D4, L4) – a run dating back seven months – and they’ve failed to score more than once in any of those fixtures.
No European hangover
One major positive for Howe’s men is that they are yet to lose a domestic fixture that directly follows a Champions League match this season.
The Magpies are flying high in Europe after three wins from a possible four and they appear to be carrying that continental form into the league.
