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2025-09-16 - Brentford vs Aston Villa
A Sports Betting Pick by Auls
Football: English League Cup Third Round
Tuesday 16th September 2025 - Kick Off 8pm
This game is live on TV
Brentford
The injury time equaliser will have Brentford feeling like they earned a deserved point in the West London derby against Chelsea and just keeps things ticking along for new manager Keith Andrews. His predecessor had considerable success with Brentford and so there are big shoes to fill, but Andrews is doing a decent enough job right now and the fans are still in a positive mood about the overall outlook.
Thomas Frank had guided Brentford to some decent Cup runs with the majority of those being in the League Cup and Keith Andrews oversaw a good victory at Bournemouth in the Second Round. Things do not get easier with another Premier League opponent in the Third Round, but this time Brentford will be getting to host.
Brentford blew a lead and conceded very late in the defeat at Sunderland before the September international break, but that is the only loss in 4 games in all competitions after a late goal in their own favour on Saturday night. Going back to last season, Brentford have lost 1 of their last 6 games at the Gtech Community Stadium.
Changes are regularly made in the early Rounds of the League Cup and Keith Andrews may choose to give some of the fringe players a few more minutes. Fabio Carvalho scored the equaliser on Saturday and the opener in the last Round and should earn a start, while the new manager used plenty of first team players in the win at Bournemouth.
Aston Villa
Four Premier League games have been played and Aston Villa are the only team that have yet to score a goal this season. Unai Emery has to be a little frustrated with the start made, although Aston Villa did manage to avoid a defeat at Everton on Saturday.
The League Cup is not really going to be a priority for a club looking to get things going in the Premier League and with Europa League commitments, but the fans will want to see a positive performance to turn the confidence around. The last piece of silverware won by Aston Villa was the League Cup back in 1996, but they had suffered three consecutive Third Round defeats in the competition before a Fourth Round exit last season.
Aston Villa have actually failed to score in 5 consecutive fixtures after the goalless draw with Everton and they have suffered 3 losses in that time. That draw also meant avoiding a third consecutive away defeat in the top flight.
Youri Tielemens is expected to miss out and could be out until the international break, but the likes of Boubacar Kamara and Amadou Onana may earn some minutes if they can be passed fit. Changes have to be expected from the visiting team, if only to give squad members a chance to impress.
Head to Head
Brentford have already beaten Aston Villa 1-0 here this season.
Aston Villa had been unbeaten in 3 visits to the Gtech Community Stadium and had won 2 in a row before the loss last month.
Prediction
League Cup action should mean limiting the stakes at least until team news is known.
The Premier League is now fully up and running and that means top flight teams are likely to ring the changes to just freshen up starting elevens that will be needed for more important games.
Keith Andrews did pick a decent team for the win at Bournemouth in the last Round and he may be more keen for his Brentford team to have a Cup run alongside the League commitments. Hosting gives them a very good chance of reaching the Fourth Round and Brentford have enjoyed recent Cup successes under previous manager Thomas Frank.
Momentum is with the team after the very late equaliser against Chelsea on Saturday night and the home fans could push them through.
For all of his successes with Aston Villa, Unai Emery has not really given the League Cup much thought and he has overseen defeats in 3 of the 4 Cup ties played in this competition.
A hugely frustrating start to the season has left The Villans as the only Premier League team yet to score a goal and so this will feel like a chance for fringe players to impress and earn spots in the 'more important' fixtures.
However, the League Cup record is a concern and Brentford may be worth backing in any of the 'Draw No Bet' markets around.
The Pick :
Brentford 2-1 Aston Villa
