Brentford denied victory by late Sunderland penalty
Brentford were forced to settle for a point after being held to draw by Sunderland in a dramatic encounter that saw the visitors have an early goal chalked off before a late penalty denied the Bees victory.
The Black Cats dominated the opening period and thought they had taken the lead when Dan Ballard turned and fired home from 15 yards following a header.
However, a lengthy VAR check intervened, resulting in the goal being ruled out for offside against Kevin Danso after a tussle with Nathan Collins. Sunderland continued to press before the break, with Enzo Le Fee striking the woodwork following a lay-off from Brian Brobbey.
In response to the first-half struggles, Brentford head coach Keith Andrews made a decisive triple substitution at the interval, introducing Aaron Hickey, Jaidon Anthony and Yehor Yarmoliuk in place of Dango Ouattara, Peter Kayode and Ibrahim Sangare.
The tactical shift instantly revitalised the hosts. Shortly after the restart, Keane Lewis-Potter cut inside to cross for Igor Thiago, whose downward header forced a scrambling save from Sunderland goalkeeper Robin Roefs.
The breakthrough arrived on 58 minutes when Mikkel Damsgaard’s cross was diverted directly into the path of Vitaly Janelt, who rifled an expert first-time effort into the top corner.
Brentford thought they had doubled their advantage on 70 minutes when Anthony poked home from close range after Roefs fumbled Thiago’s low cross from the left. Yet, referee intervention struck again as the goal was disallowed for a foul on the goalkeeper.
The decisive turning point arrived with ten minutes remaining when Lewis-Potter was penalised for holding Wilson Isidor inside the area. Despite vehement protests from the home side, a penalty was awarded, and Le Fee converted clinically into the bottom corner to level the score.
The final whistle was met with loud boos from frustrated supporters and furious confrontations between Brentford players and the officials, as the Bees had to make do with a share of the spoils.
Brentford: Kelleher; Kayode (Hickey 46), Ajer, Collins (Schuster 17), Lewis-Potter; Sangaré (Yarmoliuk 46), Janelt, Damsgaard (Wilson 86), Ouattara (Anthony 46), Thiago, Schade
Subs not used: Valdimarsson, Henry, Carvalho, Diouf
