Brentford v Charlton
A real treat for fans of both sides with a London derby on the opening weekend as Charlton make take the short journey west across the capital to Griffin Park.
After dramatically missing out on promotion in the 2012/13 season on the final day to Doncaster, Brentford got the job done last season and will be back playing in the second tier for the first time since 1993. Mark Warburton has done some tidy business in the summer to prepare for his first full season in charge of the Bees. Leyton Orient’s star man from last season Moses Odubajo joins to add some pace and trickery, whilst striking options have been bulstered with the additions of Andre Grey from Luton and Nick Proschwitz from Hull. Much like Rotherham, Brentford would have seen what Eddie Howe’s Bournemouth did last season in finishing 10th and hope to begin to establish themselves as a Championship outfit.
All change for Charlton. A new Belgium manager, 12 players in and 16 players out. A new era to say the least. After a shocking start to last season when Jose Riga took over in February the task was black and white. Keep the Addicks in the Championship. With that achieved, owner Roland Duchâtelet wanted to put his own man in charge of Charlton. Welcome Bob Peeters. Yes, that is right you have probably never heard of the manager who spent two seasons at Millwall as a player in the mid-noughties. As a manager he has taken charge of 3 clubs in Belgium, but he now steps into on of the toughest leagues in the world. One player who is still with the Addicks is skipper Johnnie Jackson. The midfielder has been with the club since 2010. He leads from the front and will have to get this group of new players working as one if Charlton are going to avoid another relegation scrap. Jackson is this game’s key man.
With Brentford riding high off of their promotion expect a repeat of Charlton’s defeat at Bournemouth last year on the opening day as they play another newly promoted side.
Score prediction: 2-1 Brentford win
