Keith Andrews was left questioning Brentford’s second-half penalty appeal after the Bees were beaten 3-0 by Manchester City at the Etihad Stadium.
Brentford had stayed in the game for an hour against Pep Guardiola’s side, reaching half-time level before Jeremy Doku broke the deadlock in the 60th minute. The key moment for Andrews came after that, with his side still only 1-0 down and pushing for a route back into the match.
Kevin Schade went down inside the area after Igor Thiago had squared the ball across to him, but no penalty was awarded. Andrews felt the incident was difficult to understand given the position Schade was in.
Speaking in his post-match press conference, Andrews said: “The one in the second half when Kev is going through and Thiago squares it to him, in what world he goes down unless there’s contact is beyond me because there’s a goal there for him to get us back to 1-1.
“So that’s probably the one where I’m struggling to comprehend a little bit.”
Andrews said he was told there had not been enough contact for a penalty to be given.
“The comment I had was not enough contact,” he said. “But someone that is as quick as Kevin Schade with his eyes on goal, I’m not really sure how much contact he’s looking for.”
The decision proved significant because Brentford were still within touching distance at that stage. Doku’s opener had shifted the momentum towards City, but an equaliser would have changed the mood of the game and given the Bees a platform going into the final stages.
City instead went on to take control. Their second goal gave the hosts breathing room before a third late on made the scoreline more comfortable than the first hour had suggested.
Andrews did not hide his frustration with the decision, but he also acknowledged the difficulty officials face.
“The officials have a really difficult job,” he said. “I do genuinely appreciate that. It’s so hard, the speed of the game at times.
“Players are trying to get the decisions and it’s really, really hard for them. But I just felt we weren’t going to get that one back.”
Brentford left Manchester with nothing despite frustrating City for long spells before the breakthrough. The defeat leaves them with two games remaining, against Crystal Palace and Liverpool, as they look to finish the season strongly.