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With the weekend well and truly in front of us, Beesotted contributor Paul Harrison gives a round up of events happening in and around Griffin Park and The Championship.

Mbeumo returns from self-isolation for West Brom match

Bryan Mbeumo is available for selection for Friday night’s home game against West Bromwich Albion.

The 20 year old French winger had tested positive for COVID-19 prior to last weekend’s trip to Fulham, and was ruled out of the 2-0 win.

However he has since tested negative and completed his self-isolation so has returned to training. As of the latest round of EFL testing all other players and club staff have tested negative.

Whether Mbeumo is actually selected against West Brom is another question.

Championship play-off dates

Dates for the Championship play-offs have been confirmed:

Semi-Final 1st Leg

  • 6th vs 3rd: Sunday 26 July (6.30pm)
  • 5th vs 4th: Monday 27 July (7.45pm)

Semi-Final 2nd Leg

  • 3rd vs 6th: Wednesday 29 July (7.45pm)
  • 4th vs 5th: Thursday 30 July (7.45pm)

Final (at Wembley)

  • Tuesday 4th August (7.45pm)

As discussed on the most recent Beesotted podcast (click here), the word on the street is there are discussions taking place about a reduced number of fans potentially being allowed into Wembley for the final, dependent on government advice.

The regular Championship season concludes on 22 July, with Brentford’s final game at home to Barnsley.

West Brom Pre-Match Discussion

The Beesotted crew met up (socially distanced) to preview the West Brom match on Kew Green on Wednesday evening

Connor from West Brom Fan TV spoke about how the Baggies feel about Friday night’s crunch clash, complementing Brentford on how the Bees performed in the reverse fixture – a 1-1 draw.

The match marks the return of ex-Bee Romaine Sawyers, who’s been instrumental to West Brom’s promotion push this season.

Albion drew 0-0 at home to Birmingham last weekend. It happened to be Matheus Pereira’s 30th start of the campaign, triggering a clause in the Brazilian playmaker’s loan deal that enables West Brom to sign him permanently for just £9m – great value-for-money.

Keith Stroud is the referee on Friday night. Brentford have won all 6 of their most recent games he’s officiated, with the most recent being the 5-0 home win over Sheffield Wednesday just before lockdown.

Assistant Head Coach Brian Riemer also spoke on the podcast, talking about his winning mentality and why Thomas Frank brought him in.

The West Brom team can look forward to a temporary shower set-up during their visit to Griffin Park to ensure social distancing is upheld.

Temporary shower set-up at Griffin Park for the away team. Pre West Brom match. June 2020

Listen to the podcast above, and read Ian Westbrook’s preview here.

Black Lives Matter

The importance of the Black Lives Matter movement was discussed in detail on the podcast. Ollie Watkins posted on Instagram after the Fulham match about the subject after getting some negative comments from fans about his involvement with the Black Lives Matter cause.

Brentford FC, and the Brentford FC Community Sports Trust, have joined the EFL in solidarity against racial discrimination.

The club have produced a video, outlining that Brentford is united against racism and discrimination. The video will be shown on Sky Sports ahead of the West Brom match.

Vital win at Craven Cottage, friendly vs Portsmouth

In case you somehow missed it Brentford returned to Championship action last Saturday with a 2-0 win away to bitter West London rivals Fulham.

Late goals from Said Benrahma and game-changing sub Emiliano Marcondes meant that the Bees have done the double over Fulham, having won 1-0 at Griffin Park in December. It also ensured the club have the bragging rights in West London, having also done the double over QPR.

The very next day the Bees drew 1-1 with Portsmouth in a friendly, with Halil Dervisoglu scoring from the penalty spot.

Brentford fielded a few first-teamers, including the aforementioned Marcondes, alongside bench players and a couple of reserves.