Brentford 2-0 Burnley: Player ratings as Toney's late brace earns Bees win
By Sean Walsh
From Brentford Community Stadium - Brentford won back-to-back games for the first time in the Premier League with a late 2-0 victory against Burnley.
A scruffy match went the way of the hosts after a late Ivan Toney brace secured three points for Thomas Frank's side, who move nine points clear of their opponents in the relegation zone.
The Bees dominated the opening exchanges but didn't make most of the scrambles they forced in the Burnley penalty area, with Bryan Mbeumo guilty of losing his composure on a couple of occasions.
Christian Eriksen's effort from 20 yards forced Nick Pope into his first save of the afternoon, just about tipping the Dane's strike behind after Brentford won the ball high up the pitch.
Most of Burnley's forays into the Brentford half came down the flanks, but they nearly found success through the middle as Maxwel Cornet flashed a shot just wide.
Burnley's best chance of the first half fell Dwight McNeil's way as he met a deep Ashley Westwood cross, but his header was closer to finding the corner flag than the back of David Raya's net.
A frustrating opening 45 for Mbeumo continued when James Tarkowski cleared his delicately stroked shot off the line and the two sides went into the break goalless.
Pope had his blushes spared when he came for but missed a Sergi Canos cross, with Vitaly Janelt's header landing on top of the net.
Another opportunity for Mbeumo went begging after being released by Toney on the counter attack, but the Frenchman was well marshalled by Tarkowski and had to settle for a corner.
At the other end, Raya produced a top stop with his feet to deny Cornet after Rico Henry's hospital back pass played the Ivorian through on goal.
A speculative strike from substitute Jay Rodriguez rattled the bar as Burnley took control of the late stages.
But Brentford took the lead with under five minutes remaining when Eriksen's great cross found Toney, and he headed into the far corner.
Nathan Collins then felled Toney in the area on the break in stoppage time and was given his marching orders, with the striker stepping up to maintain his perfect penalty record for the Bees.
Brentford fans danced on the newly-formed terraces of the Community Stadium chanting 'we are staying up', while the Clarets remain mired in the drop zone.
Brentford player ratings
1. Goalkeeper & defenders
David Raya (GK) - 8/10 - Superb with his feet again and his huge stop to deny Cornet proved pivotal.
Kristoffer Ajer (RB) - 5/10 - Still adjusting to life at right-back, often wary that his lack of pace could leave him exposed on the counter.
Pontus Jansson (CB) - 7/10 - Superb on the air and on the floor.
Ethan Pinnock (CB) - 9/10 - Outstanding. Kept Weghorst as quiet as could be and seemingly won everything he put himself up for.
Rico Henry (LB) - 4/10 - Looked nervy all afternoon and was lucky not to be punished.
2. Midfielders
Christian Norgaard (DM) - 7/10 - Swept up so well, though was usually a weaker link in possession.
Vitaly Janelt (CM) - 5/10 - Got a lot of the simple stuff wrong but you couldn't fault him for his bravery on the ball.
Christian Eriksen (CM) - 9/10 - A sensational performance. Came close to losing his patience with his teammates a few times but kept his cool to provide a monumental assist.
3. Forwards
Bryan Mbeumo (RW) - 5/10 - The game would have been dead and buried long before Toney's double if Mbeumo had kept his nerve on about seven different occasions.
Ivan Toney (CF) - 9/10 - Nerves of steel and never stopped running. Now up to 11 Premier League goals this season.
Sergi Canos (LW) - 6/10 - Played a few nice cross-field balls but his lack of pace made it hard to attack Burnley.
4. Substitutes
Yoane Wissa (LW, 74' for Canos) - 4/10 - Was on a different wavelength to his teammates.
Mathias Jensen (CM, 81' for Norgaard) - 6/10 - His forward-thinking helped turn the tide.
Frank Onyeka (CM, 89' for Mbeumo) - N/A
Burnley player ratings
5. Goalkeeper & defenders
Nick Pope (GK) - 4/10 - Far too cautious coming for crosses, and when he did he flopped at them.
Connor Roberts (RB) - 6/10 - Rarely beaten and it's not his fault Burnley lost.
Nathan Collins (CB) - 6/10 - Defensively sound for the most part until the late collapse.
James Tarkowski (CB) - 5/10 - Similarly fine until Toney peeled away from him late on. Booed relentlessly on his return.
Charlie Taylor (LB) - 4/10 - Gave Mbeumo several chances to wreak havoc.
6. Midfielders
Aaron Lennon (RM) - 4/10 - Provided nothing of note. Former teammate Eriksen wasn't having any of his dummies.
Ashley Westwood (CM) - 7/10 - Opened the game up with his excellent range of passing.
Josh Brownhill (CM) - 5/10 - Broke up play more than providing anything on it.
Dwight McNeil (LM) - 5/10 - Didn't give Ajer enough problems considering his clumsiness at times.
7. Forwards
Maxwel Cornet (CF) - 6/10 - Burnley's danger man, but failed to convert their biggest chance and that proved costly.
Wout Weghorst (CF) - 3/10 - Marked out of the game by Pinnock and was hauled off midway through the second half.
8. Substitutes
Jay Rodriguez (CF, 67' for Weghorst) - 6/10 - Looked a much better fit than Weghorst up top.