Thomas Frank, the Brentford head coach, has said the English Football League should utilise video assistant referee technology in matches of such magnitude after his side were reduced to 10 men before slipping to defeat in the first leg of the Championship play-off semi-final at Swansea. Rico Henry was given a straight red card despite appearing to win the ball after sliding in on Connor Roberts before André Ayew started and finished a wonderful move to strike an exquisite winner and make amends for a penalty miss.
“I think there should be VAR in these games,” said Frank. “I understand we do not have it in the Championship but these games are so decisive, we are playing for promotion to the Premier League, we are playing for £170m so I don’t understand why we don’t have it. VAR definitely wouldn’t have given it [as a red card]. Hopefully the EFL will do something about that.”
Frank said Brentford would appeal Henry’s dismissal and is adamant the Football Association will rescind the red card, allowing the left-back to be available for the second leg on Wednesday at Griffin Park, which is set to host its final competitive game before demolition. Frank spoke to the referee, Keith Stroud, after the game but said he “didn’t buy” the officials’ explanation for the decision.
David Raya made a fine save to deny Ayew from the spot but Steve Cooper felt his side should have had another penalty when Rhian Brewster was booked for diving despite appearing to collide with the Brentford goalkeeper. However Cooper insisted the red card was the correct decision. “You can’t do that nowadays, you can’t be as excessive as that, as dangerous as that, whether there is a touch on the ball or not, and expect to stay on the pitch,” Cooper said. “Times have changed.”
Ayew’s winner was fitting for an entertaining game between two of the division’s most fluid sides. He danced inside from the right flank before locating Conor Gallagher, whose deft flick looped over Christian Nørgaard and into Jay Fulton, who laid the ball off for Ayew to smack into the top corner for his 18th goal of the elongated campaign. As Cooper pointed out, it is an impressive tally given Ayew, in his second spell at the club, has operated on the left flank for the majority of the season. “He has lived up to his ability and his level of play. Let’s hope he can take it into Wednesday as well.”
Brentford began in lively mood and unsettled Swansea, showing no signs of being jaded after missing out on automatic promotion in midweek. Ollie Watkins carved out a series of openings, with Erwin Mulder, the Swansea goalkeeper, saving smartly down to his right to push away a cute backward header by the Brentford striker. Saïd Benrahma also went close, shooting over after bamboozling three Swansea shirts on a mazy run.
The Liverpool loanee Brewster, one of a trio of Swansea loanees who lifted the Under-17 World Cup under former England youth coach Cooper three years ago, should have found a first-half breakthrough but he headed tamely at Raya after Ayew rattled a post. Mathias Jensen also spurned a golden opportunity for the visitors after being slipped in by Benrahma but it was Ayew who showed a touch of class to give Swansea a priceless leg-up.
“It’s only an advantage if we use it,” said Cooper. “We will recover and prepare and, as far as I’m concerned it will be 0-0 and we will go there to play normally. André brushed off the disappointment of the penalty and didn’t let that affect him, but that’s what he does, step up in the big moments.”
