Opening games don’t come much sweeter than that. Saturday evening proved to be an emphatic start for Brentford and was just the platform on which an exciting season can be built.
Flying out of the traps
After a tricky start to the campaign last season, Brentford would have been aching for a fast start this time round as Keith Andrews begins his second season in his tenure as head coach.
That is exactly what was delivered. A 15-pass, 8-player sequence produced an eye-catching opening goal of the season, leaving a new-look Spurs team chasing Brentford's shadows. A swift move finished off by the ever-impressive Keane Lewis-Potter, who we’ve touted to have a colossal season, was the cherry on top.
Vitaly Janelt stuck away a spilt shot just after the half hour, as the Bees went in at half time two to the good after a phenomenal first half shift. Michael Kayode scored his second goal in red and white 5 minutes after half-time to put the game to bed.
Just 50 minutes played and Brentford had already looked to have secured their first three points of the season. A firing start.
Impressive at both ends of the pitch
Brentford showed their quality across the entire pitch on Saturday.
Going forwards, it was one of the most lethal 90 minutes I can remember in the Premier League. A weekend high in the Premier League of 3.87 xG (written before Fulham vs Chelsea) quantifies the ease at which Brentford cut through a disjointed Spurs side. Mathias Jensen and Kevin Schade really impressed on the front foot for me.
Jensen oiled the gears in attacking plays, creating a match-high of 3 chances in a fluid 70 minutes from the Dane. A vintage performance from a player that is keeping the ever-talented Mikkel Damsgaard out of the team at the moment. He looked cool, sharp, and especially relaxed with creative freedom due to the safety net of Mamadou Sangare and Vitaly Janelt sitting behind him.
What was particularly exciting to see was Kevin Schade’s new lease of life compared to the end of last season. Although unconverted, he won Igor Thiago’s penalty, had the most touches in the opposition box (8), and took the most shots (5) out of anyone on the pitch. He looked electric from minute one and truly showed why he can’t be dismissed as a real asset for this Brentford side. Following the Frankfurt win where Schade impressed, Andrews noted that this may be a different version of Schade we see this season:
“There is an energy about his game, a confidence about his game; we’ve seen it from the first week of pre-season, when he came back in a really good place physically, how he is thinking about the game, how focused he is".
Igor Thiago slotting away his penalty would have capped off the attacking superiority in real style, but it wasn’t quite to be. Nonetheless, a wonderful display.
Operating beyond expectations
Something I mentioned in my article about how Brentford can be sure of European qualification this season was more input from elsewhere going forward.
Saturday evening was the perfect example of a team pulling their weight in every aspect of the game. A quiet afternoon from Thiago proved no problem for the side, as Lewis-Potter, Janelt, and Kayode found their rhythm in front of goal. A trio not known for their goals, with just 5 between them in the league last season, showed that this team have evolved from last campaign. After Thiago’s 22 goals last season, questions were raised about what could happen if he doesn’t ignite that same form this time around. Questions comfortably put to bed.
“I don't want the full backs to play with the handbrake on”, Andrews confidently stated after Saturday’s win.
“I think we're in a position now, physically, where they’re able to get up and down the pitch" Andrews added, showing that there’s no fear in developing the team into a more ferocious attacking side, rather than feeling reluctant to bomb forward like sometimes seen last season. Great strides have been made in that respect.
Michael Kayode celebrates his goal to all but secure the points // ReutersPraise rightfully goes to players that contributed offensively, but on the back foot I thought Brentford were tremendous. Aside from allowing Mikey Moore too much room once or twice, largely due to Lewis-Potter’s attack-minded play, it was an exquisite performance at the back.
Kris Ajer continued his fine World Cup form, winning 6/6 aerial duels. Caoimhin Kelleher was superb when called upon, too. Not too much to do in the grand scheme of things, but he stayed alert excellently and pulled off 4 fine stops to keep the clean sheet intact.
Last but certainly not least, let's talk about Mamadou Sangaré. A sublime debut which captured more than just the eyes of Brentford fans. Neutral fans on social media have been full of praise for the Premier League’s latest new gem. Sangaré covered 9.5km in a maiden Premier League outing, which delivered 13 defensive contributions alongside one assist. He was simply everywhere and rightfully won the official player of the match award.
A sweet evening's work for Brentford. The perfect foundations have been laid for one of the most highly anticipated campaigns I can remember.
