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Leicester City have drawn Brentford as their next opponent in the FA Cup. The Foxes will travel to West London to square off against the Bees at the new Brentford Community Stadium the weekend of 23 January.
Who are these Bees?
Thomas Frank’s Brentford currently sit 4th on the League Championship table. They’ve picked up where they left off last year despite losing talismanic winger Said Benrahma. This year, striker Ivan Toney has carried the team on his back with 16 goals and 4 assists in 22 starts.
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How do they like to play?
Brentford prefer a narrow 4-3-3 formation and are comfortable playing the ball from the back. They’re perfectly content to let their opponents hold on to the ball and then strike on the counter. They’ve struggled to defend the wings and are vulnerable to James Maddison-esque strikes from distance.
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What is the history between these two clubs?
Leicester have faced Brentford 28 times in all competitions, winning 12, drawing 10, and losing 6. The Bees haven’t won against City since a 3-2 victory in Division 2 in 1953. The last time these two sides faced off was almost a year ago in this same competition. The Foxes took the honors at the old Griffin Park thanks to an early Kelechi Iheanacho goal.
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Who’s next if we win?
Normally, the answer would be “Who knows?” but the 5th round draw took place right after this one. If we get past Brentford, we will square off against either Blackpool or Brighton and Hove Albion in a midweek match in February. Don’t get ahead of yourself, though. Brentford are a solid side and this should be an entertaining match.