West Ham 0:1 Brentford Player Ratings: Schade’s early goal sees the Bees run away with three points at the Olympic Stadium

Brentford closed the gap in the top half of the Premier League table after beating West Ham United 1-0 at the Olympic Stadium. The Bees stormed into the lead as Kevin Schade with just minutes on the clock. West Ham were on the ropes but managed to survive till the interval. West Ham couldn’t find a way back into the game despite an improved showing in the second half as Brentford shut shop and sealed the win.

In the most recent edition of this London derby, the Hammers hosted the Bees on Saturday at tea time. The hosts went into this game with only 2 wins in 10 games and Graham Potter had to show his tactical mark on the game. Brentford too were on a similar record. Both the managers had a lot to prove as the season entered its final stretch.

Brentford known for their fast starts this season repeated their trick. From a West Ham corner, Mark Flekken plucked the ball and set the move in motion. The entire front three combined as Yoane Wissa played an excellent long ball for Bryan Mbeumo who knocked it down into Kevin Schade’s path. The German had two pops at goal but both were saved incredibly well. Schade didn’t let it go and slotted it over the line. The finish was confirmed as the referee’s watch rang indicating it did cross the line.

After a brief check for offside, the goal was confirmed. West Ham were slow out of the blocks and were punished. Graham Potter’s side were outplayed in midfield as Brentford controlled and increased the tempo at will. After a gift while playing out from the back, Yoane Wissa put the ball in the back of the net but the offside flag spared West Ham’s blushes. The visitors were all over the hosts in the opening 30 minutes of the game.

Kevin Schade hit the post on a fast break and Areola was making key saves to keep the scoreline at 1-0. West Ham’s lack of a natural centre-forward was so evident on the pitch as they struggled to find players on the end of promising moves. Wissa was again denied by an offside flag when he thought he put his side 2-0 up. There was hope for the hosts to change things in the second half as they trailed luckily by only one goal at the break as the crowd rang out boos towards the lacklustre players.

Graham Potter rang the changes as he introduced Evan Ferguson, James Ward-Prowse and Oliver Scarles to turn the tide. Players dropped into their natural positions as the hosts improved quickly after the break. Ferguson’s excellent cutback was unbelievably skied by Kudus from close range.

The Hammers enjoyed their best period of the game as Ferguson and Scarles had certain goal-bound efforts blocked. Their fast start hit an impasse as Brentford enjoyed putting up an impregnable deep block at times. The game then became an end-to-end affair as both sides began to tire.

It felt Brentford’s one-goal lead was too slender as Ferguson kept on asking questions.

This win sees Brentford close the gap in the top half of the table. They turn their attention towards a relegation-threatened Leicester away in the league. West Ham meanwhile failed to jump to 13th in the table and are 10 pts clear of the relegation zone. They travel to title contenders Arsenal next. Here are West Ham vs Brentford Player Ratings.

West Ham Player Ratings

GK – Alphonse Areola – 7/10

The French man was passed fit ahead of the game and made crucial saves from Schade but they weren’t enough to deny the opener. His saves at 1-0 kept the hosts in the game for a long period.

RB – Aaron Wan-Bissaka – 6.5/10

Tucked in alongside the centre-backs to make a back three. Was trying to play too safe when he needed to take risks and progress the ball forward. Grew in confidence in the second half but did not aid Bowne fully.

CB – Konstantinos Mavropanos – 7/10

Made great recoveries to deny Brentford easy spaces in the box and made crucial tackles to prevent them from pulling the trigger.

CB – Max Kilman – 6/10

A bit shaky on and off the ball. Kilman failed to provide a sizable threat on set pieces as well.

LB – Emerson – 6/10

Had his hands tied as Mbuemo was charging at him throughout the game. The odd chance he had to foray forward, he fluffed his lines.

CDM – Edson Alvarez – 5.5/10

Was very lightweight in midfield as Brentford ran all over him. He was not getting his challenges in and Damsgaard found pockets of spaces behind him.

CDM – Tomas Soucek – 4.5/10

The usual battering ram of Soucek was missing especially defensively as the visitors had it all too easy. Made a very rash tackle and was shown a yellow card early in the game.

RW – Jarrod Bowen – 6.5/10

The skipper tried his best to get his side going forward but he was wasteful with the ball as well. Was threatening late on in the game and tried to rile up Lewis-Potter.

CAM – Mohamed Kudus – 6/10

The tricky speedster tried one trick too many as Brentford’s defenders were eagle-eyed in tackling him. Couldnt pose his usual threat on the breaks. Missed a sitter after Ferguson pulled one back after half-time.

LW – Carlos Soler – 5.5/10

Soler thought he was clean through on goal as his ankle was caught but the referee didn’t pay attention to it. The Spaniard looks lost out wide and couldn’t help out defensively.

CF – Lucas Paqueta – 6/10

He is not a natural striker and Graham Potter was finding it the hard way. When West Ham needed someone to be on the end of attacking moves, Paqueta was found playing in deep pockets trying to receive the ball. Evan Ferguson would’ve been the go-to option had he been completely match fit. Did drop into the comfortable attacking mid-role after the break but did struggle there too.

Sub – Evan Ferguson – 7/10

Slotted into the centre-forward role right away. Squared a brilliant cutback for Kudus just minutes after his introduction.

Sub – James Ward-Prowse – 6/10

Dropped alongside Alvarez offered a forward-thinking pass to his teammates always and brought his usual set-piece threat.

Sub – Oliver Scarles – 6/10

On for Soler on the wing, the 19-year-old was better suited to play on the left with his pace and ability to cross the ball.

Sub – Luis Guilherme – 6/10

A desperate last throw of the die from Potter as he came on for a centre-back to grab an equaliser.

Manager – Graham Potter – 6/10

Tried to implement his favourite three at the back by asking Wan-Bissaka to join the backline. He doesn’t have the personnel to implement it. His side’s slow start was punished and did little to change it in the first half. A triple sub at half-time did change the game but it wasn’t tangible. He knows Evan Ferguson holds the key to his success in London.

Also Read: Brighton vs Chelsea Player Ratings: Minteh Shines as Blues Suffer 3-0 Defeat

Brentford Player Ratings

GK – Mark Flekken – 7/10

He claimed West Ham’s corner and set his side on their way to the opener. Was barely involved in the first half. Made a key save from Ferguson in the second half.

RB – Kristoffer Ajer – 6.5/10

Had it all too easy defensively and joined the attack at times. He was offside in the buildup to Wissa’s second offside goal.

CB – Nathan Collins – 6.5/10

Imposed himself strongly as West Ham crossed into the middle. He was relatively untroubled as there was no imposing presence in the box. Defended with more aggression in the second half.

CB – Sepp van den Berg – 7/10

The Dutchman is growing in confidence after putting on solid performances. He showed his prowesses on the ball as he kept playing accurate long balls forward. He was unfortunate to be caught by Bowen in a fair challenge and was replaced.

LB – Keane Lewis-Potter – 7/10

The youngster can play the full-back role equally well just like the wing-back role. He was darting forward and gave a tough time to West Ham’s defence. Got into an engaging battle with Bowen towards the end of the game.

CDM – Christian Norgaard – 7/10

Protected the backline well nipped multiple counters of West Ham and progressed the ball forward to pressurise the hosts.

CDM – Vitaly Janelt – 7/10

The German ably supported his captain defensively and joined the forward line when needed. Played the ball to Wissa in a flowing move that was later canceled due to an offside.

RW – Bryan Mbeumo – 7.5/10

Was a constant threat to Emerson and kept attacking him with purpose. Slipped in Schade with a clever header for the first goal. Had a free-kick on target blocked by the wall.

CAM – Mikkel Damsgaard – 7/10

Enjoyed the lack of pressure from West Ham’s midfield and played delicate passes in behind for his front three to attack. He should have probably scored in the first half but let the ball roll for Wissa who was offside.

LW – Kevin Schade – 8/10

A man in form this season, Schade gave the Bees an early lead. He kept on peppering Alphonse Areola and was lucky the third time of asking. He also had a great left-footed effort to skim the outside of the post in the first half. As he impressed with his performance, Sporsdunia picked him as the Player of the Match for tonight’s encounter.

ST – Yoane Wissa – 7.5/10

He was extremely frustrated as his two well-taken finishes were chalked off as the assistant raised his flag. The first one was on him for making the run early but for the second one, Ajer strayed into an illegal position.

Sub – Ethan Pinnock – 6/10

Came on the hour mark to replace the injured van den Berg. Committed a couple of silly fouls to give away free kicks.

Sub- Mathias Jensen – 6/10

Came on to provide fresh legs in the middle of the park and seal control.

Sub – Yegor Yarmolyuk – 6/10

Did try to add a second to his side’s scoreline but failed to get a return.

Sub – Fabio Carvalho – N/A

Sub – Michael Kayode – N/A

Manager – Thomas Frank – 8/10

The Danish manager came in with a perfect game plan and stuck to it. He instructed his team to sit back and hit the Hammers on the break. But they played much better football as West Ham were too passive in the first half. They switched to a conservative mode in the second half as the hosts increased pressure.

Also Read: AZ 4–1 Galatasaray Player Ratings: Eredivisie Side Run Riot As Kaan Ayhan Gets Sent Off