Brentford come from behind to see off West Ham
. But on Saturday, he finally ended his goal drought while playing for his new team, Southampton. Nathan Collins had been struggling to score a goal in the Premier League since April 2022, during his time with Burnley. However, he finally managed to break his dry spell on Saturday while representing his current team, Southampton.
Nathan Collins, the defender for Brentford, scored his inaugural goal for the team in a thrilling match against West Ham held at Gtech Community Stadium. The game was full of excitement and suspense, but Brentford ultimately emerged victorious with their incredible comeback.
On a chilly and damp afternoon in the western part of London, the game witnessed a fair amount of goal scoring and it was Neal Maupay who scored first for the home team. He hit a powerful volley that went past Alphonse Areola as the visitors, West Ham, were unable to properly clear their defensive lines.
However, The Irons responded swiftly with two goals in quick succession scored by Mohammed Kudus and Jarrod Bowen, giving them the upper hand as they headed into halftime.
Brentford came back strong after halftime and managed to reverse the game's outcome once more. Konstantinos Mavropanos, a defender for West Ham, scored an own goal that tied the game before Collins scored the winning goal by heading in Mathias Jensen's cross.
Brentford has won three matches consecutively and climbed up to the ninth position. Meanwhile, West Ham has not won in their previous four Premier League games and has fallen to 11th place.
Buzzing Bees Fuel Winning Streak
Brentford began the game with a lot of energy and self-assurance, thanks to winning their last two league matches. Before defeating Burnley and Chelsea, they went six games without a win in any competition.
Maupay, who is currently on loan to Everton, was the one to kickstart the Bees' victory, putting an end to their previous 45 matches in the Premier League without a goal. His previous successful goal was back in September 2022 when he was still part of Everton and also against West Ham.
Returning to the club where he gained recognition by securing 37 goals in two Championship seasons, Maupay appears to be happier and more at ease. As a matter of fact, the 27-year-old could have secured a more stress-free end to the game for the home team.
Manager Thomas Frank has reintroduced Maupay into the squad, and he worked effectively with Yoane Wissa before unsuccessfully firing off target.
This season, Bryan Mbeumo has excelled for Brentford, stepping up to the plate in the absence of the suspended Ivan Toney. During their match against West Ham, Mbeumo sent in a cleverly placed cross. This caused Mavropanos to panic and ultimately head the ball into his own goal. Collins was waiting just behind, ready to convert the ball if Mavropanos did not take action.
Soon after, Collins had the chance to show his skills on the field. The game was turning in Brentford's favor and Collins reacted quickly to score a strong goal from Jensen's pass.
Brentford has emerged victorious in all of their five encounters against West Ham in the Premier League.
"I have the privilege of leading an amazing team. It's thanks to some exceptional players," Frank expressed to BBC Match of the Day.
Prior to defeating Burnley, our thoughts revolved around the necessity of securing a win, but we have successfully achieved three successive victories after that. The fact that we have been able to do so despite having numerous injuries is truly remarkable.
The scoreboard showed 2-1 and it was obvious which team was dominating the game. West Ham displayed their prowess with a talented team. Towards the end of the initial half, we managed to create opportunities and maintained our strategies as planned. We just needed to add a little more skill and precision to succeed.
Usually, we enjoy getting past it, that's for sure. I reckon that two points resulted from the subsequent stage of fixed play maneuvers.
Bowen's Glory, Hammers' Heartbreak In History
Bowen experienced a mixture of emotions as he achieved an exceptional milestone in the Premier League. He became the inaugural player to mark a goal in his team's initial six away games in a season.
The objective was quite simple for him as he smoothly kicked the ball into a goal that had no opposing player nearby. However, the angle was a bit tricky since he had to turn his body a little to make the shot. The opportunity for his goal came after Kudus attempted a shot on the same post and the ball bounced back towards him for an easy finish.
West Ham took the lead 2-1 with Bowen's strike, which is now the seventh goal he has scored this season, surpassing his previous achievement of six goals in the league for the 2022-2023 season.
Kudus will feel a combination of emotions as he managed to score an impressive goal that could have easily won the game. He exhibited his acrobatic skills by jumping up high to meet Michail Antonio's cross and executed a bicycle kick perfectly.
During the first half of the game, the Irons had ample chances to secure a win. Among them, Antonio had the easiest opportunity when he saw an unguarded goalpost. Unfortunately, he missed the chance and kicked the ball wide.
West Ham is no stranger to this scenario - falling behind in a match, as they did when Maupay scored early on. So far this season, they have only managed to earn one point when in this losing position.
David Moyes will have to address some major concerns regarding the performance of his defence, as they seem to be having a tough time stopping balls from being kicked into the box. They have already given away 20 goals in the current season, which puts them behind only Sheffield United, Burnley, and Bournemouth in terms of conceding goals.
The beginning of 2023-24 was excellent for Moyes' team as they obtained 10 points out of the first 12 available. Unfortunately, things have not been going well lately as they have only been able to gather four points from the last 21 available.
Moyes stated that the goals his team let in were not related to any peculiar or extraordinary topic.
"As a player, we've come to the realization that we have failed to manage certain situations that I should have handled more effectively, and quite frankly, it disgusts me."
I reckon my squads don't behave in that manner. That's the reason why I'm displeased that I've arrived here and haven't been capable of protecting myself when confronting adverse circumstances.
The standout performer --- I'm sorry, that prompt didn't provide enough context to generate a full blog section. Could you please provide more information?
On average, it is 7.86.
The game finished, with Brentford scoring 3 goals and West Ham United scoring 2.
The second portion of the match concludes with Brentford finishing with a score of 3 while West Ham United ends with a score of 2.
Danny Ings, a player for West Ham United, received a yellow card.
The shot taken by Emerson of West Ham United was unsuccessful. He used his left foot to shoot from outside the box, but unfortunately, the ball went too high and to the left of the target after a corner.
West Ham United's corner was given away by Ben Mee.
In the game of Brentford, a substitution was made as Vitaly Janelt was replaced by Ben Mee.
Shot blocked. Brentford's Frank Onyeka took a strong shot using his right foot from a distance outside the penalty area but the goalkeeper made an excellent save in the middle of the net. The attempt was aided by Neal Maupay.
Vitaly Janelt from Brentford team has been able to earn a free kick in the section of the field that belongs to his team's defense.
Jarrod Bowen (West Ham United) committed a rule violation.
Change, Brentford. Saman Ghoddos takes the spot of Yoane Wissa.
Neal Maupay (Brentford) didn't manage to score with his right footed shot from the centre of the box, as it went too far to the left. Yoane Wissa assisted him.
The shot was unsuccessful. Mohammed Kudus, representing West Ham United, attempted a header from the central area of the box, but it went off target to the right side. Emerson had provided the assistance with a cross.
Yehor Yarmolyuk (Brentford) committed a foul.
West Ham United's Konstantinos Mavropanos is awarded a free kick in the half of the field that refers to defense.
Frank Onyeka, a player from Brentford, was awarded a free kick in the attacking half of the field.
Mohammed Kudus (West Ham United) committed a violation.
Pablo Fornals from West Ham United missed a shot with his right foot from outside the box, as the ball went slightly above the goal. Mohammed Kudus assisted him on the play.
The attempt made by Vladimír Coufal from West Ham United to score a goal was stopped. He tried to shoot with his left foot from an area outside the penalty box, but it was blocked by one of the opponents. James Ward-Prowse helped him with an assist.
Neal Maupay, who plays for Brentford, managed to secure a free kick in the half of the field where his team was playing defense.
The West Ham United player, Konstantinos Mavropanos committed a foul.
