Nick gives us his best five Bees from their Matchweek 23 draw against Crystal Palace and updates his Top 5 players over the course of the season to date.
In truth it was never going to be a classic, yet the nature of Brentford’s 1-1 draw at home to Crystal Palace left fans feeling way more buoyant than they probably had any right to do.
Vitaly Janelt’s 96th minute header was enough to secure about as hard-fought a point as they come for the Bees after Palace had looked like ending what is now an 11 game unbeaten Premier League run.
There was only enough time left to restart before referee Mr. Tierney called a halt to proceedings and The Bees stepped that little bit closer to Europe. It was that late an equaliser.
That the the game was still going was in no small part down to Tyrick Mitchell. The Palace full back going down injured by the hoardings towards the end then dragging himself onto the pitch for treatment. The referee left with no choice but to delay the game whilst the player was attended to by the physio.
The clock, stopped, would only come back to bite the visitors with such a sweet, sweet feeling of karmic retribution. Ivan Toney with the moment of the match, returning the physio’s kitbag to where it should have been.
This was always going to happen. Since hitting the top flight Brentford have beaten Arsenal (2-0), Chelsea (4-1) Liverpool (3-1) and both Manchester teams.(4-0 United and 2-1 City). Exhilarating displays with the goals flying in for fun and Brentford taking the very best in world football apart with style.
Yet stick Crystal Palace in front of us and it become a different matter.
Free flowing football goes out the window to be replaced by gritty stalemate.
A pair of 0-0 draws last season was followed by a 1-1 at Selhurst Park early on this campaign. The quartet of fixtures was completed on Saturday with another draw. Two teams who, for reasons unknown, seem to suck the life out of each other when paired together. Here’s hoping for less of the same next season.
This was a coming together so lacking in spectacle that if Match Of the Day had a slot beyond ‘last up’ I’m sure we’d have filled it.
Instead, it was final place in the running and the briefest of highlights for those of us just coming in from the pub. Yet this morning nobody will care.
It’s another point on the board and another step on our unbeaten journey. Brentford have only lost four times all campaign – a record bettered only by Arsenal (3) and Newcastle United (2).
We’ve got over a fortnight off now, given Manchester United’s involvement in the league cup final next weekend and then our visit from Fulham being pushed to Monday night under lights. Thank you, Sky.
Interestingly, it was another game where we started with the once loved back four rather than our now more customary five man defence. We did the same against both Bournemouth and Southampton. They were both games that ended in what was, eventually, comfortable victory but also games in which it felt as though at first we had struggled to break down tricky opposition. Perhaps there’s something to learn here? Or could it just be the state of the pitch after London Irish have trodden the grass into the mud? There’s only is much those orange lights can do.
Regardless, a point is a point. Nobody deserves to win just by turning up. Look at Chelsea yesterday. They’d have certainly expected to make ground on The Bees in the race to become West London’s best placed club but it was Brentford who strode further ahead of our near neighbours.
Instead of conjecture, let’s cut to the chase. The tricky task of picking a star player and, harder, seeing who fills the top five as we continue the season long quest to find our overall top performer. Nobody played particularly badly. It was more that everything felt, at face value, to be a solid 6.5 out of 10. Yet scratch below the surface and we have some contenders with two in particular being stand out. The star player award was going one way last night before waking up and flipping direction. As such, it goes to…..
Brentford Player Ratings from Matchweek 23 (vs Crystal Palace)
1st (Star Player: 5 points) – Bryan Mbeumo
Ran his socks off as part of a front three with Wissa and Ivan. It was a thankless task on an afternoon where the opposition did everything possible to contain and nullify the Bees. Yet Bryan never stopped working. Never stopped moving. Never stopped trying to find his way through.
One effort early on saw him set off on a jinking run through the defence, riding challenges and then shooting just wide.
Alas, the early promise was not fulfilled thanks to the machinations of opponents who weren’t just there to make up the numbers. Yet Bryan kept going all afternoon and was the best hope of salvaging anything in the final stages after Eze’s header on 69 looked as though it would see the unbeaten run would come to an end.
Perseverance and that never-say-die spirit were rewarded deep, deep into Mitchell time. Bryan picking up the ball on the right, choosing his moment and then delivering a quite beautiful ball in to the box. It was so well weighted that Vitaly and Ivan were practically falling over each other to get on the end of it. In the end, it was the German dynamo who met the ball and found the back of the net but it was Bryan whose cross had, undoubtedly, secured the point.
2nd – (4 points) Vitaly Janelt
In a game where quality moments were thinner on the ground than the grass (just pay off the rugger team to clear out, please) it was Vitaly who produced the best of all. Bryans’ cross was, of course, exquisite yet the determination from a player who had only been on the pitch for the final quarter hour was a sight to behold.
He timed his jump to perfection yet as much as his meeting the ball was his avoiding Ivan Toney who, by all rights, would have been expecting to steer the ball home for goal number 15. Instead, it was Vitaly who got their first and sent it crashing in to the back of the net. This, before setting off on a celebratory run that had all four sides of the ground on their feet in joyous celebration.
After an afternoon of pernickety officialdom (one can’t help but wonder if last week’s whinging from Arsenal had anything to do with that) it was a quite delicious way to silence the opposition and the ref. There was nothing could be done to deny this one. Vitaly producing a moment of rare delight in an otherwise hard fought 96 minutes.
3rd – (3 points) – Christian Norgaard
On an afternoon where the front three struggled to make in-roads, Christian was there lurking on the edge of the box. Twice, at least, he responded to the crowd’s imploring cries of ‘Shooooot’ and coming each time. One going wide and the other down the goalkeeper’s throat. On another afternoon they might have done better but at least it gave us something to get excited about.
Whatever you may read on social media about the futility of doing this (asking the midfield to shoot rather than them actually trying it), this was the sort of game on where it was going to take something special if Brentford were to find a way through a disciplined and determined set of opponents. At least Christian was able to thread the eye of that particular needle, even if he couldn’t quite take it all the way.
4th (2 points) – Mathias Jensen
A game that ended with a much changed midfield (Shandon Baptiste making a welcome return and Mikkel Damsgaard coming on for, err, Rico Henry) saw Mathias ever present.
Like Bryan, he didn’t stop running and if there was to be any chance of creating something from nothing then it was going to come from the fleet feet of the silky skilled Dane. Try saying before putting your teeth in.
Sadly, on this occasion, the endeavour was not rewarded with goals, assists or the win but his persistence and determination were clear for all to see
5th (1 point) – David Raya
An early save from Olise silenced the (thankfully drum free) visitors with their flag going the same way as their vocal enthusiasm late on. David had no chance with the goal after the ball had eluded both Ben Mee and then Ethan Pinnock before curling towards the unmarked Eze. Depite this, for all the transfer talk the game again showed what he means to Brentford and vice-versa.
With time fast running away, Raya came charging out of his goal to provide that rarest of footballing sights – the goalkeeper taking a throw in. It built the momentum and lifted the crowd. The goal that would come shortly after, a natural conclusion. His own running the entire length of the pitch to join in the celebration showed just how much it was enjoyed.
Elsewhere he was solid when called on and the distribution remained as key as ever. On an afternoon of fine margins, David just about stood out enough for there final berth in our top five.
Brentford Player Ratings – Top 5 Players Overall (after Matchweek 23)
All of which means that as we take that short break ahead of the West London derby, Ivan Toney and Ben Mee remain in the top two places overall. Mathias Jensen overtakes Rico Henry once more whilst David Raya keeps things locked up tighter than our defence. Ethan Pinnock (27) and, now, Bryan Mbeumo (24) head up the chasing pack
1st – Ivan Toney (41 points)
2nd – Ben Mee (39 points)
3rd – Mathias Jensen (35 points)
4th – Rico Henry (34 points)
5th – David Raya (32 points)
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2022-23 Brentford Player Ratings – Matchweek 23 by Nick Bruzon
