Despite taking a contentious lead in the first half against Manchester United, Brentford was unable to maintain it as Erik ten Hag’s team mounted a strong comeback.
Thomas Frank, the manager of Brentford, believed the referee was correct to order Matthijs de Ligt off the pitch before his team scored from a corner at Old Trafford.
In first-half stoppage time, De Ligt was ordered to leave the pitch for the third time to receive treatment for a head wound, and Brentford capitalised on their numerical advantage when Ethan Pinnock headed in.
Referee Sam Barrott and fourth official Gavin Ward infuriated United’s players and coaching staff, but Frank believed they were merely abiding by the rules and stated that if the circumstances had been reversed, the home team would have tried to take advantage as well.
“I think it is good refereeing, if I am honest,” he stated. “If Manchester United took the corner and we took out Nathan Collins because he was bleeding, they would want to take the corner.”
However, the rage drove United’s comeback in the second half, with Rasmus Hojlund scoring the game-winning goal shortly after the hour mark and Alejandro Garnacho equalising two minutes after the restart.
Frank acknowledged that a response was inevitable, but he also commended United’s key players for helping to spark the turnaround.
“A lot of their key players stepped up second half,” he stated. “We were far too passive, and we knew they would come out strong. The momentum shifted. If not confidence, then quality was what we lacked.
“We thought we were the best team in the first half and performed well in it. Manchester United was unquestionably the superior team in the second half.
“It was disappointing that we couldn’t do better in the second half. I’m disappointed that we gave up a goal just two minutes, and the momentum suddenly shifted. They succeeded. We were lacking in quality in the first and second halves, and too many of our players didn’t perform at their best, which is what we need to do if we want to defeat Manchester United.”
Frank also joked that his squad couldn’t add to their remarkable record of four goals in the opening 75 seconds of games this season and had to practice the coin toss after losing it for the second consecutive game.
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