Brentford fans who made the exodus from West London to Arsenal on Wednesday evening witnessed a game of two halves from the much-changed Bees and an improved second 45 minutes at least went some way to make up for the ‘no-show’ that preceded it.

Admittedly, the Carabao Cup is not the club’s priority this campaign, however, with around 9,000 away fan having given their backing in such impressive numbers, many felt let down not to have started with a stronger side, or put on a better showing from the start.

The result, and the performance over all, was not as bad as the trip to Chelsea a couple of seasons ago, but I feel Brentford didn’t do themselves real justice on the big stage and we set ourselves up to be plucky losers at best – which is how it transpired.

Losing to Arsenal is no crime, of course, but Derby County had shown the way the previous evening at Old Trafford by putting on a fantastic performance and pulling off a famous win, with several Rams making a real name for themselves in the process. The Emirates cup tie was a real wasted opportunity.

Many fans, stuck in long queues outside the ground, would have missed Danny Welbeck’s opening goal, a glancing header from a Matteo Guendouzi cross in the fifth minute, and the unmarked England striker made it two before the break finishing off a great Gunners move that carved the Bees apart… it could have been four or five in truth as Arsenal attacked at will.

The second half was more like the Brentford we have known and loved this season, and Alan Judge’s delicious free kick  just before the hour mark certainly lifted the flat atmosphere in the away end, it was great to see him wheeling away in delight once again, and Canos went close shortly afterwards when he shot just over from a very good position.

Brentford pushed hard in the last half and hour, but despite bringing on top scorer Neil Maupay and Benrahma to up the attacking threat, it was the home side that scored the all-important next goal to wrap up what was a fairly comfortable win.

As you will hear from the fans who spoke on the Pride of West London Post Match Podcast, there was a real sense of anti-climax, not so much for the defeat itself, more for the manner of the loss. The team selection simply didn’t warrant the significant following the fans had provided, which is a real shame.

Dave Lane
@beesotted100

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