Brentford beat Dons as Smith era starts with win
Brentford 2 MK Dons 0
Goals in either half from Lasse Vibe and Alan Judge earned Brentford victory in Dean Smith’s first game in charge.
The new head coach saw his team take the lead on 20 minutes and then squander a hatful of chances, hitting the bar three times.
His initial plans derailed slightly when he lost Alan McCormack in the warm-up and Sergi Canos came in for only the second start of his loan spell from Liverpool.
But after a slow start, Brentford showed Smith their counter-attacking potential with a wonderfully worked goal.
Alan Judge began the move with a neat turn and sprint from halfway before releasing Jake Bidwell, whose cross was headed home by Vibe.
Judge himself wasted a one-on-one chance as Dons keeper David Martin saved and he also struck the bar with a free-kick, with the Dons’ Antony Kay clearing Konstantin Kerschbaumer’s follow-up off the line.
Canos was the next to hit the woodwork as a clearance fell to him on the edge of the box, and Vibe was also denied by the frame of the goal early in the second half after a neat turn and firm shot.
Any fears that Brentford may rue their missed chances were allayed when Judge scored the second on 71 minutes.
Sam Saunders, just on as a substitute, sent in a corner which was cleared out to Judge, and his low shot from 25 yards ran through a crowded box and into the net.
The next biggest ovation was reserved for the return of Jota, after four months out injured.
The Spaniard came on for the last 10 minutes in his first senior appearance since the opening day of the season.
Brentford: Button; Yennaris, Tarkowski, O’Connell, Bidwell; Kerschbaumer, Diagouraga; Woods (Jota 79), Canos (Saunders 66), Judge; Vibe (Hofmann 87).
Subs not used: Bonham, Barbet, McEachran, Gogia.
