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An undefeated sweet 16 for Brentford and one of the most significant and satisfying results to date as they came from behind to fire their fellow Bournemouth promotion hopefuls.
This victory was a testament to the depth of quality in Thomas Frank’s team as Tariqe Fosu came off the bench to head home with the winner 11 minutes from time.
During this hectic season, everyone has to dig deep into the Championship and when their substitutes prove to be the winners of the matches, all the signs are encouraging.
Fosu found himself perfectly positioned to nod home to Bryan Mbeumo’s superb center and solve an entertaining skirmish between two quality camps.
Fit Dominic Solanke had given Bournemouth a first-half lead that lasted 12 minutes until Henrik Dalsgaard slammed into a header.
Both teams enjoyed their superiority spells, but in the end it was Brentford who dug deeper and extended an outstanding streak that has polished their Premier League prospects and guided them to the Carabao Cup semi-finals.
Bournemouth did not play on Boxing Day after Millwall opponents suffered a Covid-19 outbreak and started the game with all kinds of pent-up energy.
At just 40 seconds, Mathias Jensen’s loose play in midfield allowed Jefferson Lerma to slip Solanke behind an unprepared Brentford defensive line.
Solanke threw his shot instead of stinging it, but the ball slipped under David Raya anyway and it took a spectacular punt from Pontus Jansson to avoid Brentford’s initial embarrassment.
Bournemouth’s initial barrage continued with prowler Philip Billing rushing into the area after playing a one-two with Solanke. He really should have fired, but instead he slashed for David Brooks, charging.
Brooks made contact and this time it was Rico Henry, sliding towards the finish line, who managed to clear the danger at the last moment.
They would soon gain a well-deserved advantage, but the irony is that Brentford had begun to prevail in the meantime, with Asmir Begovic rejecting Jensen’s efforts and then Sergi Canos from set piece situations in quick succession.
Canos, with confidence surging after a memorable hat-trick in Brentford’s win at Cardiff on Boxing Day, also slipped a low effort by very little.
But no one could claim that Bournemouth’s opener in the 25th minute was undeserved. Once again, the opportunity resulted from an attractive preparation game, this time based on Junior Stanislas on the left side.
Finally, the ball moved towards Lloyd Kelly and he made a soft, cushioned swing like a golfer looking for the green. There was Solanke, who beat Jansson and Ethan Pinnock to score his seventh goal in 10 outings.
There was always going to be a backlash from Brentford before the break and Begovic was called into action again to reject Mbeumo’s rebound shot.
And from the resulting corner came a draw. It was made in Denmark, with a Jensen corner kick hit by a Dalsgaard header at the near post after he climbed on Lerma’s goal from about five meters away.
It was Bournemouth’s first goal conceded since December 1, six games ago, a testament to their finally shattered defensive strength.
And suddenly they looked against the ropes, with Jensen taking a low shot just a short distance from Bournemouth’s post in first-half injury time.
The Dane was pulling the strings and, early in the second period, he lifted a beautiful ball over the Bournemouth defense that Henry was unable to take advantage of. Canos then cut the square from the left, passing the defenders before firing uselessly.
At the other end, the ball was snapped attractively by Brooks with a Brentford boot, but Raya lived up to the shot despite being prevented from seeing by Henry.
Jason Tindall threw Joshua King for Lewis Cook on an attacking move and headed into the Brentford area with a series of jump steps before a shot that Raya grabbed.
But the decisive moment came for Brentford. It was Ivan Toney who found Mbeumo and cut Kelly off with a touch on the instep. That created room to throw a cross to the back post for Fosu to win.
Jensen was attacked by Toney to be absolutely sure in injury time, but Begovic was up to the task before Stanislas took a long-range shot after that.
MATCH FACTS
Brentford (4-3-3): Stripe; Dalsgaard, Jansson (c), Pinnock, Henry; Jensen, Janelt, Dasilva (Marcondes 81); Mbeumo (Ghoddos 89), Toney, Canos (Fosu 65)
Substitutes not used: Daniels (GK); Thompson, Forss, Sorensen, Stevens, Gilbert
Coach: Thomas Frank
Scorers: Dalsgaard 36; Fosu 79
AFC Bournemouth: Begovic; Smith, S Cook (c), Simpson, Kelly; Lerma (Gosling 89), L Cook (King 69), Billing; Brooks (Surridge 83), Solanke, Stanislas
Substitutes not used: Travers (GK); Riquelme, Rico, Ofoborh, Kilkenny, Anthony
Coach: Jason Tindall
Top Scorer: Solanke 25
Reserved: L Cook
Source: m.allfootballapp.com
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