Match Preview: Brentford Under-21s travel to Everton in PDL play-off quarter-final | OneFootball

Brentford Under-21s prepare for a Professional Development League play-off quarter-final clash with Everton Under-21s under the lights on Friday 1 May.

The young Bees travel to Walton Hall Park stadium to take on the Toffees, with kick-off at 7pm BST.

Brentford Academy has recently been awarded Category One status, and so will face an interesting challenge in Everton Under-21s, who featured in Premier League 2 this season.

Speaking after the round of 16 win, head coach Sam Saunders said: "We're trying to give these lads an education on why our game plan looks the way it does.

"Our coaching is focused on the fact that they need to fix problems themselves: it's their team, their game and their careers - they have to lead it and take accountability.

"They've done that really well this season so far and have stuck together, which has given us as a coaching staff plenty of reasons to be proud.

"Hopefully, we have a few more knockout games this season so that they can keep learning and growing as individuals and as a team."

Last time out

The west Londoners defeated Category One side Derby County Under-21s 2-0 at Wheatsheaf Park to progress to the quarter-finals.

Michel Boni continued his excellent scoring form this season, bagging his 17th of the campaign after good work from Riley Owen and Ethan Laidlaw.

Andre Grey then doubled the Bees' lead with an emphatic strike from outside the box to wrap up the game after a clever flick from Theo Mawene.

About Everton

Everton Under-21s finished 18th in Premier League 2 this season, meaning they dropped into the PDL play-offs.

In their round of 16 clash, they edged past Watford as Braiden Graham scored a 120th-minute winner in extra time to win the tie 3-2.

Graham is the main goal threat for the young Toffees, finishing as the third top scorer in PL2 with 12 goals.

The Merseyside outfit are managed by former striker Paul Tait, who joined Everton in July 2022, and was interim head coach alongside Leighton Baines for the first team in 2023.

Ticket information

Tickets for the clash at Walton Hall Park are available here.

Tickets are priced at £5 for Adults and £3 for Under-18s otherwise.

Match coverage

The club will have updates of the game against Everton on social media, as well as a match report on the club's website and app.