Brentford 1-1 Man United: A Distasteful Return to Club Football for Erik ten Hag!
The penultimate international break for this season concluded, as all fans have widely anticipated club football’s return. In this case, Manchester United all season have searched for consistency when it comes to executing the finer details. Sometimes the simpler ones also. Something that may have not been apparent in all areas during their 4-3 victory against Liverpool last time out. Nonetheless, they found a way to thrillingly surge into the FA Cup Semi Finals.
Brentford on the other hand seemingly nosedived in comparison to last season’s impressive 9th placed finish. Constant suspensions, injuries and international obligations have contributed to below par performances. Two wins in their previous 10, and 4 wins all season long at the Gtech Community Stadium only continued to paint portraits of discomfort for all following Bees.
Potentially looking to add onto those miseries, it was Manchester United who established themselves quickly away from home. Settling, and attempting to string together a collection of passes that would lead to a goal. Brentford themselves, contrary to form, also presented threatening sequences that would later become sustained domination of the initial period.
Come the 45th minute, blocks, saves, timely interceptions and Ivan Tony agonisingly hitting the post would all act as barriers that you always felt The Bees had to bypass in order to walk away with the favourable result. Something that didn’t happen in October when two late Scott McTominay goals erased Mathias Jensen’s first half strike to steal all three points.
Little to no improvements would follow for the travelling team, once more conceding a high frequency of shots on goal, while also enduring a landslide of infiltrations inside their area. 85 touches to be exact was the most any team had conceded in the last 5 years! Andre Onana persisted with strong hands while his post would illude Yoane Wissa this time around, who almost exquisitely dispatched his half volley to no avail. Even Rasmus Højlund’s rare shot on goal wasn’t enough to turn the tide. Nonetheless it was well saved by Mark Flekken.
Ivan Tony’s tight offside goal provided the 20 time champions with another get out of jail card, while a simple lofted pass would catch out an already dozing defence as the returning Bryan Mbuemo kept Onana’s goalposts reverberating. Those inside and out of the G-Tech could’ve equally asked this same question. How have we not seen a goal yet up to this point?
While undeserved, it would be summer signing Mason Mount, not just opening his account in a Man Utd shirt, but also providing Erik ten Hag with what could’ve been seen as a priceless goal in pursuit of Champions League football. Unfortunately for both, Brentford instantly responded through Kristoffer Ajer.
An unlikely source finally guided the ball past his opposition’s goal line to rescue a point which may pay dividends for Thomas Frank when this Premier League season’s sunset descends. Potentially, they should’ve left with more, but finishing was a major hurdle that even an industrial performance like his sides couldn’t rise high enough to clear.
Erik ten Hag may enjoy returns to the team for Lisandro Martinez and Casemiro, but as far as this performance goes, the status quo continues. Their endeavours lacked the intensity, quality and consistency to keep up with this Brentford team who could have most definitely replicated that infamous beating in the Dutchman’s second game in charge last season.
Maybe now Mason Mount can now kick on after an injury riddled campaign, but questions will continue to be asked of the collective group as they fail to glamorise fixtures in a way many still expect to see as time progresses. A quick turnaround against an underachieving Chelsea side will provide its challenges. Some that require certain natures of this performance to be eradicated, but maybe it is too little, too late to expect such drastic changes for now.
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