• 1
  Bournemouth have two points from three games and a new head coach in Marco Rose still finding his feet — this is exactly the kind of match a struggling side needs to turn a corner in. Brentford, meanwhile, are sat pretty in 5th with five points and genuine European ambitions this season. A Bournemouth defeat here and the early-season murmurs about Rose only get louder; a Brentford win keeps them right in the mix at the top end of the table.
• 2
  Bournemouth haven't beaten Brentford in the league since August 2014 — that's eleven straight meetings without a win, eight defeats and three draws. It's the kind of hoodoo that starts to feel less like coincidence and more like a psychological block the longer it goes on. Cherries fans would love nothing more than to finally end it in front of their own crowd.
• 3
  Watch Dango Ouattara, who Bournemouth reluctantly sold to Brentford last year for a club-record £42million and who scored the winner at Newcastle on his 100th Premier League appearance. He came through this club, and now he's the one Brentford fans are relying on to go and beat his old employers. If he's the difference again on Saturday, the home end won't quite know how to feel about it.
• 4
  Brentford's team news isn't all good: captain Nathan Collins went off after just 17 minutes against Sunderland with a calf injury, and Keith Andrews has already ruled him out until after the international break. That means no Collins for this trip, the EFL Cup tie at Reading, or next week's visit from Chelsea — three matches without your captain and first-choice centre-back is a real dent for a side flying as high as Brentford currently are.
• 5
  Here's the stat that should worry Bournemouth fans more than the league table does: they've conceded a costly late goal in all three of their opening games this season, turning good positions into two points from a possible nine. If it happens a fourth time on Saturday, this stops being bad luck and starts being a pattern. Keep half an eye on the last 20 minutes — that's usually when it goes wrong for them.

• 1
  Bournemouth have a new man in the dugout — Marco Rose replaced Andoni Iraola this summer after Iraola left to take the Liverpool job. Big shoes to fill: Iraola had the Cherries playing some of the best football outside the traditional top six.
• 2
  Rose inherited a squad that lost several of its best players over the summer — Dean Huijsen to Real Madrid, Illia Zabarnyi to PSG — and yet Bournemouth still finished 6th last season. That's the kind of recruitment record that makes rival clubs jealous.
• 3
  It's been a slow start under the new boss: Bournemouth are still without a Premier League win, with late goals costing them against Manchester City, Everton and Newcastle. Frustrating, but hardly a crisis given the calibre of that opposition.
• 4
  To make life harder, Bournemouth were handed one of the toughest opening fixture runs in the league this season, starting with Manchester City. Worth mentioning if anyone questions why the results haven't come yet.
• 5
  There was at least a first win under Rose — in the Carabao Cup, against Lincoln City. Not the competition anyone cares about most, but a start is a start.

• 1
  Brentford handed head coach Keith Andrews a new contract running all the way to 2032 — a huge vote of confidence for a man who'd never had a top-flight job before last season. He was even nominated for Manager of the Season in his first year in charge.
• 2
  Andrews took over from Thomas Frank, who left to manage Tottenham, and the fact Brentford haven't missed a beat since says a lot about how the club is run. Worth mentioning that continuity — it's rarer than it sounds in the Premier League.
• 3
  Brentford brought in experienced striker Callum Wilson this summer to add proven Premier League goals up front. A smart, low-drama signing — very on-brand for a club that doesn't really do panic buys.
• 4
  The club did lose defender Ethan Pinnock over the summer, so there's a bit of rebuilding to do at the back. Not a disaster, but worth knowing if the conversation turns to Brentford's defence.
• 5
  Brentford's whole recruitment model is built on data and smart spending rather than splashing cash, and it's become the approach other mid-table clubs try to copy. Good comparison line: their entire summer business barely registers next to what the big six spend on a single player.