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Rasmus Hojlund’s first Premier League goal of the season helped to ease the pressure on manager Erik ten Hag as Manchester United claimed an important 2-1 victory over Brentford.
United needed two stoppage-time goals to beat the Bees on their last visit to Old Trafford in October 2023, and their powers of recovery were required again on Saturday.
Ethan Pinnock headed Brentford into the lead five minutes into first-half stoppage time, but two moments of individual class turned the game around in the second half.
Alejandro Garnacho levelled with a fine volley before Bruno Fernandes’ delicate flick teed up Rasmus Hojlund for the winner, his first Premier League goal of 2024/25.
United leapfrog their opponents with the victory and move into the top half with 11 points from eight matches. Brentford, meanwhile, are one point further back in 12th place.
How the match unfolded
Brentford almost fell behind in bizarre fashion midway through the first half as Mark Flekken dropped a cross against Hojlund before scooping the ball off the line.
Flekken was then worked at his near post by Fernandes, before Andre Onana went one better at the other end with a stunning save from Christian Norgaard’s dipping strike.
United were hit with a sucker punch on the stroke of half-time, Pinnock heading Mikkel Damsgaard’s corner home after Matthijs de Ligt was forced off temporarily due to a head injury.
However, United were level within two minutes of the restart, Garnacho scoring with a brilliant back-post volley from Marcus Rashford’s cross.
United upped the ante from there, and the pressure paid off shortly after the hour mark as Hojlund latched onto Fernandes’ backheel before coolly lobbing Flekken.
With United’s confidence growing, Flekken made a big save to deny Diogo Dalot, and there was to be no late twist as Ten Hag’s men held on for a morale-boosting win.
History repeats itself for United
Last October, United welcomed Brentford to Old Trafford following back-to-back defeats, for a match that felt potentially decisive for their under-fire boss Ten Hag.
On that occasion, two stoppage-time strikes from Scott McTominay overturned Mathias Jensen’s opener and handed Ten Hag’s side a huge victory, giving the Dutchman some temporary respite.
After a week in which Ten Hag accused members of the media of inventing ‘lies and fairytales’ about his reign, there was a sense of déjà vu on Saturday, with Brentford threatening to inflict another humiliation on his team before they rescued the points.
The hosts produced another disjointed performance in the first half, with the absence of injured midfielder Kobbie Mainoo disrupting their balance as Casemiro and Christian Eriksen were overrun.
But Ten Hag’s United have a knack for coming up with a result when matters look bleak, and their individual quality shone through in the second half, most obviously in Garnacho’s thumping equaliser and Fernandes’ cultured assist for Hojlund.
With fixtures against West Ham and Leicester City – as well as a blockbuster clash with Chelsea – to come in the next three weeks, Ten Hag will hope this victory can serve as a turning point.
Bees pegged back again
Having scored in the second minute or earlier in four straight Premier League games before this one, Brentford left it late to hit the front by their standards, with Pinnock taking advantage of some static set-piece defending in first-half stoppage time.
However, the contest had been flipped on its head within 17 minutes of the restart, with manager Thomas Frank, who has now lost 50 matches in the top flight, left to rue yet another lost lead.
Brentford dropped a Premier League-high 30 points from winning positions in 2023/24, and no team has dropped more than their 11 already in 2024/25, having also let leads slip against Manchester City, Tottenham and West Ham.
The Bees buzzed around United in the opening period, not giving the hosts’ short-handed midfield a moment’s peace and looking to feed Mbeumo whenever possible.
However, Mbeumo was effectively contained by Dalot after the break, with Brentford’s lengthy injury list limiting their attacking options.
Yoane Wissa’s return from the bench will certainly be a welcome sight for Frank, though, as his team look ahead to a fixture against Ipswich Town at the Gtech Community Stadium next week.
PREMIER LEAGUE