Thiago scores twice as Brentford beat Man Utd
Brentford 3
Thiago (8′, 20′)
Jensen (90’+5)
Man Utd 1Šeško (26′)
Igor Thiago’s two goals and keeper Caoimhin Kelleher’s second-half penalty save helped secure victory for Brentford against Manchester United.
Matthias Jensen’s stoppage-time goal sealed a deserved Bees win.
Striker Thiago found the net for the first time at the Gtech Community Stadium with a thumping strike before doubling his tally as the hosts made an excellent start to the game.
A Kelleher mistake allowed Benjamin Sesko to pull a goal back for the visitors but the goalkeeper redeemed himself in the second half by saving a Bruno Fernandes’ spot-kick.
Substitute Jensen made sure of the points to give Brentford a third win from their past four home games against United.
An aggressive opening from Keith Andrews’ side resulted in Thiago lashing home following a Jordan Henderson pass that exploited a malfunctioning offside trap from the visitors.
A Nathan Collins header then drew a superb save from Altay Bayindir just moments after defensive colleague Sepp Van den Berg had also been denied by the United goalkeeper.
But Brentford did eventually double their lead when a Kevin Schade shot was pushed into the path of Thiago by Bayindir and the Brazilian bundled the ball over the line.
A frantic first half continued as Kelleher fumbled a Patrick Dorgu cross and was eventually beaten by Sesko on the striker’s third attempt to turn home.
But the Irish keeper proved his worth after the interval, diving low to push away a penalty from Fernandes after Collins had pulled down former Brentford favourite Bryan Mbeumo.
And Brentford made sure of the win in the 95th minute thanks to a swerving strike from Jensen at the end of counter-attack
Brentford: Kelleher, Kayode, Collins, Van den Berg, Hickey (Henry 73), Henderson (Onyeka 81), Yarmoliuk, Ouattara (Lewis-Potter 73), Damsgaard (Janelt 81), Schade, Thiago (Jensen 90).
Subs not used: Valdimarsson, Pinnock, Milambo, Ajer
