match preview: brentford
4pm Sunday 22nd May 2022 @ Brentford Community Stadium
By James Hull | @jamesahull
This is the end. This hateful, painful, prolonged season of grinding gears and misfires is coming to an end on Sunday and however it turns out, I'll be glad it's done. With only a handful of decent performances all season to cling onto, the DVD will not be like gold dust this summer.
It all comes down to a shootout between Leeds and Burnley; as Marsch says we have to "outpoint" them. Drawing on boxing where the phrase originates, we're in the championship rounds at the end of the match, behind on points needing a knockout. A draw may do; a win might not be enough.
Fans of a narrative will look at the reverse fixture in December, when we outclassed the Bees for much of the game but let them score two quick goals. A last minute equaliser but those critical injuries to Bamford, Phillips and Cooper were the outcomes then. And so to West London, where Bamford may be available for at least some minutes, and an actual full game performance would be not only a novelty but a necessity.
Brentford may be safe but that's no reason to expect an easy ride; there's been plenty of needle from the Championship days, from Dean Smith's ugly gravity-sensitive shithousers to the 2019 Griffin Park disaster where hopes of automatic promotion were extinguished along with Bamford's cast iron penalty claim. But there was the 2020 redemption story, a 1-1 following a poor run of form and included a classic clanger from Casilla brought back from the edge by Cooper's corner and an outstanding controlled performance.
Pontus Jansson may still love Leeds but he's a professional and a competitor and will be keen to show up. Brentford's eccentric collection of humourless fans will also be delighted to see Leeds go down - that's all in the game. Who doesn't relish seeing a side get relegated by yours? One of the few highlights of a mid-table finish.
We have to keep tabs on events at Turf Moor, where Burnley know a win keeps them up but just matching Leeds will suffice. Newcastle are no pushovers though and since January are one of the form teams of the division. Chris Wood will be the pick of the aforementioned narrative fans if a goal from the former Burnley totem pole sends them down. Burnley also played on Thursday, getting a draw out of a maddeningly inconsistent Villa. Will fatigue come into play?
The post-mortem on this season is to come, regardless of outcome there has been much that went wrong that needs airing. But for now we can just hope for the great escape. Although if the England band are nearby to play that tune please burst the drum and shove a pie down that bugle.
Expectations? I think Leeds will draw. And Burnley will get a late equaliser to dash our celebrations. Leeds that.