The Brentford Player Ratings feature keeps track of the best Bees as the season progresses. Our inaugural edition catches up after the first 10 games.
Teams like Brentford. Little Brentford. That pub team. Tinpot. A bus stop in Hounslow.
The Bees have heard it all before.
Many, many times. A team who were underestimated in League One and sneered at by the ‘big’ clubs in the Championship. A ‘crackpot’ owner using stats and computer models rather than traditional techniques to find players.
Even last season’s Play-Off final victory was preceded by a giant turd in the shape of Manchester United supporter Terry Christian (his match prediction rather than the man himself). The broadcaster took to Twitter to note: “These teams with average gates of 12,000 coming up to stink the PL out by fighting relegation from august every year. Be better if it’s Swansea – its an actual place and double the average gate of Brentford.” Aside from the laziest writing this side of Mrs. Brown’s Boys, Christian’s prediction blew up in his face with The Bees reaching the top flight and taking it by storm.
Indeed, this season Brentford have managed to do something his own team failed so spectacularly to accomplish. Namely, putting up a fight at home to Liverpool. Our own 3-3 draw was as awe inspiring as the Old Trafford’s 0-5 reverse was abject.
That’s been the story of Brentford in the top flight. Seen as whipping boys by most yet playing our hearts out. Wolves tanked at Molineux. West Ham United battered and all three points taken at the end of a never say die battle in the London stadium. Top of the table after beating Arsenal in the season opener. Draws picked up along the way and, aside from Burnley on the road (move along, nothing to see here), even the defeats have been games where head coach Thomas Frank can feel hard done by that we haven’t come away with at least a point. Chelsea, we’re looking at you. Cripes, that Edouard Mendy is a ‘keeper and a half. The cauldron of noise that is Lionel Road is as tough a place as any for visiting teams to walk out at.
We can talk about the importance of the owner, the fans, the recruitment and a new home but ultimately it all comes down to results. So, who are the key players to have helped Brentford get to within a few points of the European places at that magical ten game mark when the table can be said to have truly ‘taken shape’? Who will end up sitting on the top rung of the Brentford players’ power rankings when the season ends? Ongoing we’ll take an in depth look after each game but, for now, let’s rewind to see the story so far.
Brentford Player Ratings – the 5 best players from each game so far in 2021/22
Brentford Player Ratings – 13th August: Brentford 2 Arsenal 0
1st – Sergi Canos.
You could award Sergi the freedom of West London just for his energy. Rampant down the right in his newly found position of wing back and tearing the flimsy Arsenal defence a new one, it was fitting that this most popular of players was the man to score Brentford’s first ever Premier League goal. As one fan put it : “I remember when Sergi Canos posted a r.i.p tribute to the Tinky Winky teletubby when the actor died, and now here he is scoring our first Premier League goal. What a journey.”
The next best:
2nd – Ethan Pinnock
3rd – David Raya
4th – Vitaly Janelt
5th – Christian Norgaard
Brentford Player Ratings – 21st August: Crystal Palace 0 Brentford 0
1st – Kris Ajer
If Lionel Road has been noisy last week, this was a taste of what was to come. A frenzied home crowd led by one fan wielding a timpani drum whipped up the atmosphere to almost intimidatory levels pre kick off. Brentford weren’t phased and new signing Kris Ajer was immense. The ball carrying centre-back a titan alongside Pinnock and Pontus yet not afraid to push up higher than Simon Cowell’s waist band.
The next best:
2nd – Rico Henry
3rd – Bryan Mbeumo
4th – Pontus Jansson
5th – Sergi Canos
Brentford Player Ratings – 28th August Aston Villa 0 Brentford 0
1st – Ivan Toney
Boom. Brentford’s most coveted asset off the mark. The Championship’s record breaking goal scorer, playing in a slightly different role this season, needed just 7(seven) minutes to open his account. Walloping one high into the net, his link up play with Bryan Mbeumo very much a taste of things to come in Brentford’s quest for goals this season
The next best:
2nd – Matias Jensen
3rd – Kris Ajer
4th – Bryan Mbeumo
5th – David Raya
Brentford Player Ratings – 11th September Brentford 0 Brighton 1
1st – Shandon Baptiste.
A welcome return from long term injury for the midfielder who leapfrogged both Onyeka and Ghoddos into the starting XI. Driving the team forward and spreading the ball out with aplomb, it was a gutsy call to start him but he more than justified the selection before running out of steam. No coincidence that his departure also saw the Bees go on the back foot
The next best:
2nd – Rico Henry
3rd – Ivan Toney
4th – Vitaly Janelt
5th – Christian Norgaard
Brentford Player Ratings – 18th September Wolves 0 Brentford 2
1st – Ivan Toney
There are no words for this man’s penalty technique. No run up. A vague shuffle forward. Barely any backlift. Then it comes. Pinpoint precision and high velocity into one of the corners. As heart stopping for the fans as it is cool for Ivan. It worked in the Championship and now it works in the Premier league. Another assist, too, whilst his work feeding Mbeumo could become as available as the goals themselves.
The next best:
2nd – Kris Ajer
3rd – Bryan Mbeumo
4th – Christian Norgaard
5th – Rico Henry
Brentford Player Ratings – 25th September Brentford 3 Liverpool 3
1st – Vitaly Janelt
Quite possibly the most incredible all round team performance ever witnessed by the Brentford fans. End to end football in a game that had it all. Frankly, you could have given it to anyone of the starting XI but for me, Clive, German U-21 Vitaly edges it for our second goal and bossing the midfield in the face of a marauding yellow army
The next best:
2nd – David Raya
3rd – Ivan Toney
4th – Rico Henry
5th – Yoane Wissa
Brentford Player Ratings – 3rd October West Ham 1 Brentford 2
1st – Bryan Mbeumo
Now THIS is why we love football. The midfield decimated before kick off, in the warm up and once the game began but Brentford pushed on. Bryan Mbeumo grabbing the goal and taking the game to the opposition from the off.
The next best:
2nd – Christian Norgaard
3rd – Ethan Pinnock
4th – Frank Onyeka
5th – Yoane Wissa
Brentford Player Ratings – 16th October Brentford 0 Chelsea 1
1st – Christian Norgaard
A performance to match the Liverpool game with Brentford making it “Hell on earth” (Ben Chillwell) for Chelsea in the last half hour. Norgaard dominant and almost grabbed a last minute equaliser when his spectacular bicycle kick was somehow tipped on to the bar by goalkeeper Mendy. Only his heroics and the ‘performance’ of referee Anthony Taylor keeping the European Champions alive.
The next best:
2nd – David Raya
3rd – Zanka
4th – Bryan Mbeumo
5th – Ivan Toney
Brentford Player Ratings – 24th October Brentford 1 Leicester City 2
1st – Pontus Jansson
The captain leading by example. Almost scored and should have had a penalty after being punched in the face by Kasper Schmeichel early doors. Bonus points for then ploughing through pantomime villain James Maddison in the second half. At some point his goal will come and whilst the Bees ended up missing out this time, the experience and determination of Pontus gave some cheer on a drab afternoon
The next best:
2nd – Christian Norgaard
3rd – Zanka
4th – Ethan Pinnock
5th – Mathias Jensen
Brentford Player Ratings – 30th October: Burnley 3 Brentford 1
1st – Saman Ghoddos
Every team has ‘one of those’ performances. Brentford definitely off key and, perhaps, needing time to adjust to a new goalkeeper following the long term injury to David Raya against Leicester. Unable to cope with the high intensity push from a Burnley team who were well out of sight before Ghoddos eventually found the back of the net late on. It was nothing to write home about and the overall team performance well below expected standards.
The next best:
2nd – Mads Roerslev
3rd – Rico Henry
4th – Sergi Canos
5th – Ivan Toney
Brentford Player Ratings – Top 5 Players Overall (after first 10 games)
1st – Ivan Toney
2nd – Christian Norgaard
3rd – Bryan Mbuemo
4th – Rico Henry
5th – David Raya
Knocking on the door: Kris Ajer, Vitaly Janelt
Keep an eye out for Boosts on Brentford matches at www.hollywoodbets.co.uk or www.hollywoodbets.ie
