Leicester City vs Brentford

Last season’s Premier League surprise package Brentford travel to the King Power Stadium to encounter Leicester City in their opening 2022/23 fixture.

An underwhelming recruitment campaign over the summer and last season’s equally disappointing eighth-place Premier League finish mean Leicester City head into the 2022/23 season in low spirits. But Brendan Rodgers’ men rounded off the previous league campaign on a high, going unbeaten in their final four 2021/22 Premier League fixtures (W3, D1). They scored 13 goals across those four outings, as many as they had netted in their previous 12 league games combined. Moreover, the ‘Foxes’ won both last season’s Premier League meetings with Brentford by an identical 2-1 scoreline, suggesting a fast start could be on the cards. That would not be surprising, though, as they have won their opening Premier League match in their last two seasons. With Leicester’s league fixtures in 2021/22 featuring an average of 3.18 goals, the King Power fanbase could be in for a treat.

Meanwhile, Brentford defied every expectation in their maiden Premier League season in 2021/22, yet they eventually had to settle for a 13th-place finish. Keen to avoid second-season syndrome, Thomas Frank’s visiting men will be looking to build on a decent away form from the tail-end of last season. After going winless on the road for five months between October and March, the ‘Bees’ racked up four triumphs from their final six road trips in the 2021/22 Premier League season (L2). The arrival of Ben Mee from Burnley could help tighten up Brentford’s leaky backline and improve an alarming statistic that saw the Londoners concede the opening goal in 13 of their 19 top-flight travels last season.