Ivan Toney talks: “Our place is always rocking, whether it’s a derby or not. We could have been in front by two or three, but they got back in the game.We started the second half like the first, pressed them high and got our reward.
“The wait [to take the penalty] didn’t matter. What was I thinking about? Being on holiday! No panic – just think of how you’re going to celebrate.” He’s asked about finishing the top four. “We can still win the league,” he concludes with a smile.
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Match report
Here is Ed Aarons’ verdict from the Gtech. Thanks for reading, it’s been fun. Goodnight!
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Here’s the latest Premier League table. Brentford’s next three games are away to Everton and Southampton, and then at home to Leicester …
| Pos | Team | P | GD | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Arsenal | 26 | 34 | 63 |
| 2 | Man City | 26 | 41 | 58 |
| 3 | Man Utd | 25 | 6 | 49 |
| 4 | Tottenham Hotspur | 26 | 10 | 45 |
| 5 | Liverpool | 25 | 19 | 42 |
| 6 | Newcastle | 24 | 18 | 41 |
| 7 | Fulham | 26 | 4 | 39 |
| 8 | Brighton | 23 | 14 | 38 |
| 9 | Brentford | 24 | 8 | 38 |
| 10 | Chelsea | 25 | -1 | 34 |
| 11 | Aston Villa | 25 | -7 | 34 |
| 12 | Crystal Palace | 25 | -11 | 27 |
| 13 | Wolverhampton | 26 | -16 | 27 |
| 14 | Nottm Forest | 25 | -24 | 26 |
| 15 | Leicester | 25 | -7 | 24 |
| 16 | West Ham | 25 | -10 | 23 |
| 17 | Leeds | 25 | -11 | 22 |
| 18 | Everton | 26 | -19 | 22 |
| 19 | Southampton | 25 | -21 | 21 |
| 20 | AFC Bournemouth | 25 | -27 | 21 |
Full time! Brentford 3-2 Fulham
Nope – Brentford restart, and Anthony Taylor blows for full time within seconds. “Hey Jude” rings out, and Brentford soak up a deserved derby victory!
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GOAL! Brentford 3-2 Fulham (Vinicius 98')
Oh, hello. In the eighth and final minute of stoppage time, Pereira shoots, Raya spills and Carlos Vinicius is there to lift the rebound into the net. Is there any time at all for a dramatic equaliser … ?
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97 mins: Ivan Toney gets the player of the match nod – a slightly predictable choice *adjusts glasses*. That said, I would have gone for Pinnock or Jensen, even though it’s frowned upon in some quarters to pick a goalscorer.
95 mins: Harry Wilson, who’s been on for 20 minutes, tries to break downfield but is caught and casually dispossessed by Rico Henry, moving in an entirely different gear.
93 mins: Reed has a go from 30 yards out – it’s on target, but comfortable for Raya. Time running out for Fulham. “Brentford absolutely getting a stomp on!” cheers William Preston.
“The young German substitute conjuring a smart assist sounds like a moment of pure Schade-freude,” honks Peter Oh.
89 mins: The corner is cleared and when it’s played back into Mitrovic, he’s offside. Two more Brentford changes – Mbeumo and Hickey are replaced by Josh Dasilva and Mads Roerslev. There will be eight added minutes.
88 mins: Fulham have been second-best tonight, particularly since half time – but they have played two games since Brentford’s last fixture. Perhaps the games have caught up with them – although Mitrovic forces Raya into a save with a cute backheel at the near post.
This goal is a microcosm of everything Brentford do so well – they press Fulham high from a throw-in, Toney wins the ball back and it’s quickly worked wide to Kevin Schade. The substitute produces a moment of magic to evade Robinson on the byline and cut back to Jensen, who rolls the ball through Leno’s legs!
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GOAL! Brentford 3-1 Fulham (Jensen 84')
Just as Fulham get their attacking reinforcements on, Brentford strike again and make the three points safe!
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82 mins: More changes for Fulham, with Carlos Vinicius and Cedric Soares coming on. Kenny Tete and Willian go off – it’s been a bit of an off-night for the latter.
81 mins: Mbeumo’s delivery isn’t the best, but it bobbles into the path of Jensen, whose shot from a tight angle is only a danger to the corner flag.
79 mins: Brentford win a free kick out on the left, Henry and Norgaard drawing a foul through sheer nuisance value.
77 mins: The raft of recent stoppages have taken much of the momentum out of this game, with Fulham struggling to put anything together – just 10% of the last 10 minutes has been played in Brentford’s final third.
75 mins: Schade comes on for Wissa, with fan favourite Vitaly Janelt replacing Damsgaard, who was impressive in his second league start for Brentford.
74 mins: Silva does make changes, with Lukic and Solomon hooked. Harry Wilson and Bobby Decordova-Reid are on, changes that leave the midfield engine room a little bare.
“Re: Toney’s perfect penalty record: does it make him a safe bet on spot-kicks?” asks Admir Pajic (and others). Yes, very good, everyone.
71 mins: Thomas Frank has held off on those changes, and Marco Silva is still yet to shuffle his team.
69 mins: … and Ivan Toney almost scores what would have been one of the goals of the season! From the halfway line, he spots Leno off his line and launches a shot from 50 yards. It’s dropping, Leno is hurtling back … and it lands on the roof of the net!
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68 mins: We restart, and after another passive spell of Fulham possession, Brentford break …
65 mins: Wissa and Tete both go down after clashing heads under a high ball. While they get treatment, Frank readies some replacements – with January recruit Kevin Schade set to come on.
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62 mins: Fulham win a corner as Pereira’s cross is turned behind by Damsgaard. The Brazilian will take it himself, and floats it over to Willian, whose ball back across goal almost finds Mitrovic. Pinnock gets in a vital header, before Lukic fires his shot well over the bar.
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60 mins: Mitrovic is booked for mithering the referee. There’s certainly an edge to proceedings, with Fulham feeling aggrieved at that penalty decision. They should probably be aggrieved with Issa Diop, but there you go.
59 mins: Will Brentford risk sitting back again with half an hour to go? Can Fulham get back on terms more quickly this time? Questions to be answered, soon enough.
56 mins: Brentford fans are indulging in a lengthy rendition of “Fulham get battered, everywhere they go.” Fulham’s away league record is actually a very solid five wins, two draws and five defeats, so the joke’s on them.
GOAL! Brentford 2-1 Fulham (Toney pen 53')
Ivan Toney strokes the ball beyond Leno’s dive, to score his 22nd penalty from 22 taken for Brentford, and restore the hosts’ lead!
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Penalty to Brentford! From a long throw, Diop tussles with Norgaard, clumsily catching the midfielder’s boot as he tries to clear – and Anthony Taylor points to the spot!
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48 mins: A chance at the other end as Tete finds space and finds Robinson. His cross is whipped in towards Pereira, who shins his effort across goal. That was a decent opportunity, and this has been a very open start to the second half.
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47 mins: Norgaard’s cross is deflected towards Rico Henry, but he can’t get enough power on his header to beat Leno.
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Here we go again
Brentford go straight on the attack, the lively Wissa cutting back across goal – but Leno is there to claim it.
Looking back on that Lukic foul – moments before, he’d been caught by Toney’s boot, which deflected off his side and into his face. Did Anthony Taylor cut him some slack as a result? Perhaps. Anyway, time for the second half …
“Manor Solomon is 167cm (5’5”) tall,” notes Kári Tulinius. “He must be the shortest player to have a scored a header this season, and possibly shortest ever in the Premier League?”
According to this blog post I’m shamelessly pilfering, Manor would make the top 10. The top three (up until May 2021, anyway) are Daniel Podence, Santi Cazorla and – who could forget? – Leicester’s Nathan Dyer!
Some half-time reading, on the third-best team in west London:
Half time: Brentford 1-1 Fulham
Brentford end the first half pushing forward, with Diop getting a boot in to deny Wissa a late shot on goal. It’s all square at half time, with Fulham fortunate Sasa Lukic was not shown a second yellow just before the break. More soon.
46 mins: Lukic is back up and running, but immediately in trouble as Wissa skips past him. The Serb, already booked, clips his opponent’s heels – but Taylor declines to show a second yellow. Replays suggest Lukic is a very lucky boy – it looks like a textbook yellow card to me.
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44 mins: Lukic flicks the ball away from Toney in midfield, and the striker lands heavily on the midfielder – catching him in the face with his boot. He is quick to hold his hands up, and there’s no further action beyond a free kick. Lukic needs treatment, and while he’s seen to, the board shows three added minutes.
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42 mins: Brentford’s game plan, to defend their lead and soak up Fulham pressure, has been undone now. Will they go back on the front foot before half time? The hosts win a corner, but are penalised for a foul on Willian.
As Jeff Sax emailed to point out a little while ago, tonight marks the Jewish holiday of Purim – cause for further celebration for the Israeli international, who now has four goals in his last four Fulham games.
GOAL! Brentford 1-1 Fulham (Solomon 39')
Pereira’s free kick is (another) beauty, crashing off the near post and looping back across goal – where Manor Solomon is first to react, nodding into an empty net!
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38 mins: Now Fulham have a set-piece chance of their own, as Damsgaard is penalised for (inadvertently) catching Reed in the stomach with his studs. It’s right on the edge of the area, inside the D …
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36 mins: Ooooof! It’s a superb hit by Toney, seeking out the far top corner from 25 yards and clattering the fabled angle of post and bar. So close!
34 mins: Demonstrated neatly here as Damsgaard dribbles forward and gets beyond Sasa Lukic, who hauls him down. A booking for the Fulham man, and another dangerous free kick for Brentford.
33 mins: Fulham are being patient and changing up their angles, with Willian and Pereira trying to get closer to Mitrovic. They’re still not really causing Brentford any discomfort though, and the hosts are a threat on the break …
30 mins: Two decent crossing opportunities for Fulham go to waste – first Pereira overhits his ball in, then Tete sends the ball sailing into Raya’s hands. Solomon is joining Mitrovic in the area, but they are still up against five Brentford players every time the ball comes in.
29 mins: The recent pattern continues – Fulham prod the ball around 30 yards from goal, and Brentford look to break from deep at every opportunity.
27 mins: Fresh from applauding Anthony Taylor’s decision-making, Ivan Toney ambles upfield and attempts to knock a long ball into Wissa’s path using, well, his posterior. He certainly is fun to watch, this lad.
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25 mins: In fact, Fulham have had 73% possession in the last 10 minutes. Willian tries to make it count, cutting in from the right and going down with Toney behind him. Anthony Taylor pulls out the yellow card, and books the Brazilian for simulation. A bold decision, and probably a correct one, as replays show very little contact at all.
22 mins: Fulham are able to stroke the ball around inside the Brentford half, but haven’t had any luck breaking down the hosts’ low block. Robinson almost causes trouble with a jinking run, before Mitrovic is muscled off the ball.
20 mins: Reed goes down by the corner flag but the referee isn’t interested. Henry’s clearance then rebounds off Willian, and out for a goal kick. A fitting end to a frustrating first 20 for Fulham.
17 mins: Marco Silva is grumbling to the fourth official, unhappy with Brentford’s rough-and-ready approach and the awarding of that free kick. Anthony Taylor has a quick word, although nothing he says appears to improve Silva’s mood.
16 mins: After a delay while Jensen sees the physio, Bryan Mbeumo lines up the free kick – and hits the outside of the post! It’s a terrific effort, swerving and leaving Leno on his heels, but had just too much swazz on it.
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14 mins: Jensen burrows forward and goes down, a little easily, to win a free kick 20 yards out. Replays show what looked an accidental collision with Reed’s shoulder. Fulham might feel aggrieved if Brentford score from here …
13 mins: Toney and Diop have been getting well acquainted off the ball, and the referee has a word with both players during a break in play.
12 mins: Brentford look happy to sit back, having blustered their way into an early lead. They can break with menace, too, as demonstrated when Damsgaard almost picks out Yoane Wissa with a clinical through ball.
10 mins: Richard Hirst’s hopes of a goalless draw may have been dashed, but there’s still plenty of time for Fulham to react. Mitrovic gets his head on the ball in the Brentford area, but he’s lacking numbers in support.
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8 mins: There’s a delay before we can restart after jubilant home fans lob a couple of flares on to the pitch.
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GOAL! Brentford 1-0 Fulham (Pinnock 6')
Through sheer force of will, Brentford are in front! A corner is cleared as far as Aaron Hickey, whose cross falls to Ethan Pinnock. The centre-back turns and shoots, and the ball gets a big deflection off Tim Ream before squirming into the bottom corner. It could go down as an own goal, but it’s a goal either way.
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4 mins: Another big chance for Mbeumo, and he does much better here, shaking off Robinson and firing low across goal. Leno is on hand again though, blocking with his foot. Brentford have started at a relentless pace …
3 mins: What a miss! Oh boy, how are Brentford not in front? From a long free-kick, Rico Henry charges clear down the left and cuts the ball across goal. Mbeumo is there, ready to sidefoot home – but he sends it wide!
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2 mins: A first sight of goal for Ivan Toney after he picks up on a loose Pereira pass – and he nearly makes it count, Leno forced to get down low and turn his curling effort away at the far post!
It's go time
Brentford are in their usual red and white shirts with black shorts. Fulham, in their minty fresh away duds, kick off. Anthony Taylor is the man in the middle.
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“Whoever would have thought that at this stage in the season Fulham and Brentford would be battling for the West London Championship (eat your heart out John Terry),” says Richard Hirst.
“But I fear that without Palhinha to rule midfield (and score great goals) this will be a hard night for Fulham: if you offered me 0-0 now I’d bite your hand off.”
Both sets of players are warming up in #HerGameToo T-shirts, part of an initiative to mark International Women’s Day. Brentford’s matchday programme features interviews with director Monique Choudhuri and Fulham groundsperson Rachel Woods.
At half-time, fans will get the chance to hear from Fulham goalkeeper Edie Kelly as well as Amber Lloyd, a Brentford player and female football development manager for the club’s Community Sports Trust.
You can find out more about #HerGameToo and their campaign work in football, cricket and rugby over here.
Sky has a chat with both managers. Thomas Frank thinks that both teams’ lofty positions will add “fun – if that’s the right word”. He wants his team to play with confidence, earned during an unbeaten league run stretching back to before the World Cup, and put on “another show under the lights, at the Gtech.”
Marco Silva, the understated opposite of the effusive Brentford manager, has picked Manor Solomon for his first league start, and is happy with the competition for places in his squad. Silva expects a lively atmosphere tonight “like at our home game in August”. Fulham won that game 3-2, and very entertaining it was too (apologies for the partisan commentary on these highlights).
Thomas Frank makes one change from the team that picked up a late point against Crystal Palace in mid-February, with Mikkel Damsgaard replacing Josh Dasilva for just his second Premier League start.
For the visitors, Aleksandar Mitrovic is back after missing the last two league games – although he featured in the Cup win over Leeds. His Serbian compatriot, Sasa Lukic, steps into central midfield to cover João Palhinha, who is suspended.
The teams
Brentford (4-3-3): Raya; Hickey, Pinnock, Mee, Henry; Nørgaard (c), Jensen, Damsgaard; Mbeumo, Toney, Wissa.
Subs: Cox, Schade, Dasilva, Onyeka, Jansson, Ajer, Baptiste, Janelt, Roerslev.
Fulham (4-2-3-1): Leno; Tete, Diop, Ream (c), Robinson; Reed, Lukic; Willian, Pereira, Solomon; Mitrovic.
Subs: Rodak, Wickens, Cédric, Adarabioyo, Harris, Wilson, James, Decordova-Reid, Vinícius.
Preamble
In recent years, the battle for supremacy in west London has been monopolised by Chelsea. You have to travel deep into the Premier League’s baggy-shirted, Alive-and-Kicking past to find a season when the Blues weren’t kings of their manor. The 1994-95 season, to be precise, when QPR (and, at a stretch, Wimbledon) finished above them in the top-flight table.
For Fulham and Brentford, moments outside the shadow of Stamford Bridge have been few and far between. The Cottagers last finished above Chelsea in 1982-83, down in the second tier. For tonight’s hosts, the wait has been far longer – Brentford have not finished above the Blues since 1937-38, during a brief pre-war run as west London’s top team.
Despite being London’s oldest club, Fulham have never had that honour – but records are there to be broken. This is shaping up to be a historic season for both of these sides, sitting above Graham Potter’s drifting side and chasing European adventures, any faint fears of relegation long since banished. Fulham are seventh, four points above Brentford having played two games more.
A win for either side tonight would put them in the rear-view mirror of fourth-placed Tottenham, who are hardly blazing a trail towards the Champions League. In fact, finishing above Chelsea should be the least of their expectations. As west London derbies go, this is a big one. Kick-off is at 8pm, GMT; team news to follow.
