Brentford earned their eighth straight Championship win with a hard-fought 1-0 victory over Preston North End to move within a single point of second-placed West Bromwich Albion.
The Bees scored inside five minutes for the second successive match as Emiliano Marcondes chipped a lovely ball into the path of Ollie Watkins, who smashed it past the outstretched hand of Preston keeper Declan Rudd.
The remainder of the half saw some fantastic saves from both goalkeepers – Brentford’s David Raya managing to keep out Darnell Fisher’s free-kick while Rudd got a hand to a powerful Said Benrahma shot.
Preston dominated possession early in the second period but failed to create any clear cut chances while at the other end Benrahma nearly made them pay after drifting inside and firing his shot just wide on 72 minutes.
Neither side were able to find any clear cut chances late on as Brentford spurned multiple counter-attack opportunities and Andrew Hughes’s header for PNE was easily collected by Raya.
The result means Brentford now sit on 81 points, just one behind the Baggies as they continue their surging run towards automatic promotion.