Keith Andrews is confident Jannik Schuster can fill the gap left by Nathan Collins after the Brentford captain sustained an injury against Sunderland last weekend.
Collins was forced to be withdrawn in the 17th minute of Brentford’s 1-1 draw with Sunderland, with Schuster thrown into his Premier League debut at Gtech Community Stadium.
The 20-year-old, who signed from Salzburg this summer, was tasked with keeping Sunderland striker Brian Brobbey quiet, a task he passed with flying colours.
During the match, no player made more clearances than Schuster’s nine, while he also won four of the eight aerial duels he contested.
It remains to be seen how long Collins will be on the sidelines, though Andrews has backed Schuster to make an impact, starting away to Bournemouth this Saturday.
“It’s a calf strain,” Andrews said of Collins’ injury. “I don’t know the extent. Obviously, it’s unfortunate that the skipper had to come off.
“But it was an introduction for Jannik, which I thought he relished. I think he wanted that battle and fight against [Brian] Brobbey, and then [Wilson] Isidor came on as well. I think he stood up to that in a really mature way.
“It’s not particularly a surprise. He’s wired that way. He’s an impressive young man, and we were so keen to bring him here.
“Part of the decision to allow Ethan [Pinnock] to go was that we were confident in Jannik’s ability in the short term. He was thrown into it, and he produced.”
Debut impact
Jannik Schuster stepping up on his first #PL outing pic.twitter.com/IMe3Nra4Li
— Brentford FC (@BrentfordFC) September 8, 2026
But Brentford come up against a Bournemouth side who are finding their feet under Marco Rose, with the Cherries booking their place in the last 16 of the EFL Cup in midweek.
After failing to win any of his first three Premier League games in charge, Rose got himself off the mark thanks to a 4-0 victory against Championship side Lincoln City.
Ryan Christie’s hat-trick was followed up by a stoppage-time goal from Rayan, who has performed well since returning from injury.
“It is about proving. It is important to have him back. He was injured, but he is in a good spot now,” Rose said of Rayan’s return to the Bournemouth side this season.
“We know that he is a top player technically and not just the goals, the passes he played. The things he sees on the pitch, the overview he has. I am really happy with him.”
Rose also used the opportunity to rotate his squad, with the likes of Ben Gannon-Doak, Michele Di Gregorio and Bafode Diakite all being handed starts on Tuesday.
“We were convinced because we knew everyone had a good pre-season,” Rose said on utilising his squad. “Now it is getting busy with many games, and we need everyone.”
PLAYERS TO WATCH
Bournemouth – Alex Scott
After being linked with a summer move to the likes of Manchester City, Arsenal and Chelsea, Scott has proved this season why many are out to secure his services.
Only Yoane Wissa (11), Joao Pedro (11) and Bukayo Saka (10) have won more fouls in the Premier League so far this season than Scott (nine), while the midfielder ranks joint-fourth for carries into the attacking third (nine).
Brentford – Kevin Schade
Brentford drew their first league game away from the Gtech Community Stadium this season at Leeds United, and Schade’s individual brilliance put them ahead.
Schade has scored in Brentford’s last two Premier League away games. The only previous time a player for the club has scored in three successive games on the road in the competition was the German between January and February 2025.
A touch of pure class from Kevin Schade pic.twitter.com/k3CghOwcg4
— Brentford FC (@BrentfordFC) August 30, 2026
MATCH PREDICTION: BOURNEMOUTH WIN
Despite being favoured by the Opta supercomputer, Bournemouth have never beaten Brentford in eight top-flight meetings (D3 L5). They are the only side the Cherries have faced without yet winning in the competition, while it’s the most the Bees have faced an opponent without losing.
Bournemouth have led in all three of their Premier League games this season and failed to win any (D2 L1), becoming the second side in the competition’s history to do so after Chelsea in 1992-93. No side has ever done so in their opening four matches of a campaign before.
Rose’s style is slowly being imprinted, though. No side has recorded more direct attacks in the Premier League this season than Bournemouth (seven), with Brentford facing two in each of their last two matches.
Brentford, meanwhile, are unbeaten in their last five league games (W1 D4) and could equal their joint-longest run under Andrews, doing so in January (W4 D2) and April (W1 D5) last season.
The Bees are also unbeaten in 11 league meetings with Bournemouth (W8 D3) since a 1-0 Championship defeat in August 2014.
Bournemouth (12) and Brentford (11) are two of the three sides with the most draws in the Premier League in 2026, while no side has dropped more points from winning positions since the start of last season than the Cherries (29).
OPTA WIN PROBABILITY
Bournemouth – 45.5%
Draw – 26.8%
Brentford – 27.7%
