Brentford host Arsenal at the Brentford Community Stadium in London on 12 February 2026, in Premier League regular season round 26. Brentford sit 7th on 39 points, pushing for European contention, while Arsenal lead the table with 56 points and a strong Champions League qualification trajectory. Recent head-to-head history clearly favors Arsenal, who have won three of the last five meetings, with one draw and one Brentford win.
Brentford’s momentum is mixed: their recent league form reads “WWLLW”, but overall season form is streaky. At home they are solid, with 7 wins from 12 and a goal difference of 23 scored to 12 conceded. An average of 1.9 home goals for and only 1.0 against suggests they are usually competitive in London. Crucially, top scorer Igor Thiago has 17 league goals and is not listed among the absentees, so Brentford retain their main attacking weapon. However, multiple knee and ankle injuries (F. Carvalho, J. Dasilva, A. Milambo) slightly reduce depth. Brentford have kept 3 clean sheets at home, but they have also failed to score in 3 home games, underlining some inconsistency.
Arsenal arrive as league leaders with formidable underlying numbers. Their recent form string “WWLDD” is slightly less dominant than their season-long pattern, but they still boast 17 wins from 25. Away from home, they have 7 wins in 12, scoring 1.5 goals per game and conceding only 0.8. The statistics suggest one of the division’s best defenses, with 13 clean sheets overall and just 17 goals conceded. Offensively, they spread goals around, with Viktor Gyökeres on 8 league strikes. However, the news factor is significant: key creative and attacking figures Martin Ødegaard and Bukayo Saka are ruled out, and Mikel Merino is also missing, while Leandro Trossard (5 goals, 5 assists and top of their assist chart) is questionable. This clearly dents Arsenal’s attacking ceiling, even if their structure and defense remain strong.
History and season-long stats favor Arsenal, but injuries level the playing field. Brentford’s strong home scoring and Thiago’s form point to them finding the net, while Arsenal’s away defensive record suggests they are unlikely to collapse. We predict a tight Arsenal win, with a controlled but not explosive game. Correct score prediction: Brentford 1–2 Arsenal. Arsenal’s superior defense and head-to-head edge outweigh their attacking absences, but Brentford’s home strength should keep the game close and competitive for bettors looking at narrow away-win and both-teams-to-score angles.
