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Premier League
West Ham United 0-1 Brentford 

Saturday, 15th February 2025
by Chris Wilkerson

A disastrous start to an abysmal first half was enough to consign West Ham to another home defeat as Brentford took all the points with a 1-0 victory this Saturday afternoon.

A Schade goal inside the opening five minutes was one of many chances the away side had as they tore the Hammers' defence open time and time again, with only a couple of very tight offsides stopping it being three goals that The Bees would have completely deserved in the opening 45 minutes of the game.




A triple substitution at half-time was enough to bring a competent second half from Potter's side, but the level of control they got still failed to see them create much in the way of meaningful chances.

The manager made three changes, bringing Mavropanos, Alvarez and Paqueta back into the side for Coufal, Cresswell and Irving as West Ham reverted to a back four and the 4-2-3-1 most in the squad are accustomed to. Bowen went back to the wing, with Paqueta the striker, Kudus in that central '10' role and Soler on the left side.

Having had a nice two-week gap to work with his squad, many had hoped to see strides of improvement in a team that had been getting better under the new manager. Instead, this was a performance that only proved how much work there is to be done on a team and squad that remains unbalanced and not quite fit for purpose.

West Ham were open in the centre of the park and their defence throughout the whole of the first half, and Brentford were keenly aware. The visitors are not a team scared to go forward quickly, and it was their eye for a counter that gave them a lead in the fourth minute.

From a West Ham corner, the ball was cleared into midfield and the front three were flying. It was Wissa in the West Ham half playing a curled ball behind the retreating two of Kilman and Emerson.

The left back went to meet the bouncing ball but lost the headed duel with Mbeumo, which saw the winger nod it on for Schade as he flew through. Into the box, his first shot was saved, only for the ball to jump off Areola's trailing leg and loop towards his own goal.

The goalkeeper did exceptionally well to recover, clawing it away from goal as Mbeumo and Mavropanos slid in together to challenge for it. Yet luck was refusing to side with Areola, as this time his heroics could only divert the ball straight into the path of Schade, who revelled in the 'keeper's misfortune as he smashed it home.

The French goalkeeper had blocked it once more, but this time it had crossed the line already, and the Brentford man wheeled away. Schadenfreude indeed.

It was not a wake-up call for the home side, instead a sign of where that starting team were. The midfield wasn't working, and it didn't until it was torn apart at half-time.




Brentford could have been two goals up before 10 minutes were through, had Damsgaard not tried to square his header in front of goal when he was unmarked and only 10 yards out.

It took 15 minutes for Potter's side to get some control of the ball, and they finally had a shot after 20 minutes, not that it threatened. Whereas the visitors were finding it easy to get to goal, winning a duel in midfield a minute after that Emerson effort and instantly sliding a ball to get Mbeumo through, forcing a good save from Areola.

They thought they had extended their lead after some quite ridiculous play by Paqueta in his own half. The Brazilian, 25 yards from goal and down the right channel, decided to try square the ball across the pitch, only to pass directly to Mbeumo in the middle.

The Cameroonian quickly slid it through the defence to the left of the box. Areola scrambled across the goal, desperately reaching to get to it before Damsgaard and Wissa. Damsgaard couldn't reach it, but Wissa could, poking it into the goal from yards out.

As VAR checked, hopes were pinned on an offside. Had the Danish midfielder got to it, the goal would have stood. But it was Yoane Wissa's goal, and it was Yoane Wissa who was offside as the lines were drawn and West Ham were given a reprieve.

Soon, Soucek was booked for two loose tackles, challenges that looked desperate by a man who looked lost in the midfield. Anything West Ham built fell apart quickly, and with the team so fragile against a counter, every attack was playing with fire.

Soler led what looked a potential attack, a lovely touch guide him by one defender, but after he went down in the Brentford half, with the foul missed, it was The Bees again on the attack, Schade smashing the outside of the post after the loose ball was played forward instantly and he was found in the box.

A vital challenge from Mavropanos in the box couldn't hide another shaky performance from the Greek defender, and it is interesting to note that Kilman looked back to the inconsistent and uncertain defending that started to plague his game as this season has gone on. It might just be that a back three suited him, or it might be that the ex-Wolves man is unsettled alongside his erratic teammate.




With a few minutes left in the half, Brentford had the ball in the net again, a lovely passing move in and around the box seeing Ajer drift in off the right flank to combine with Janelt, who played a deft square touch to Wissa, who again found the back of the net.

Yet again, Wissa was the victim of VAR, this time it was the right Ajer who had stepped back from an offside position to make that little pass to Janelt. West Ham's blushes were spared again.

Mbeumo wasted a good opening in stoppage time, blasting wide when he had space to do better and take his time after a beautiful pass from halfway got him away from Kilman, and it was a relief that the whistle came for the break with The Hammers only a single goal behind.

Potter reacted, replacing Emerson, Soucek and Soler with Scarles, the returning Ward-Prowse and the debutant Evan Ferguson replacing them. Now The Hammers had a true focal point, and a midfielder with more ball players as Ward-Prowse anchored with Alvarez and Paqueta went in the slot ahead of them, forcing Kudus to the left wing.

Instantly, it was clear the changes had worked. The half started with West Ham maintaining possession at a level they had never managed in the first 45 minutes, and the whole tone of the game changed as now Brentford found gaps plugged and an opponent much more settled in its shape and on the ball.

Ward-Prowse was key in this, the midfielder always busy, always working to be available, and playing 41 passes in his half of football compared to Soucek's 27. For an inkling of how on the periphery Soler was, the Spaniard only played 8.

It also helped to have Paqueta deeper and taking a more classic midfield approach compared to Kudus, the Brazilian linking well from the deeper pair. It took four minutes for West Ham to create their best chance of the game.

Mavropanos chipped a nice ball forward to Bowen, and the captain did well to take it down on his chest and poke it on to Ferguson overlapping to his right.




Down the wing and the side of the box, the striker drove a low ball into the middle of the area and Kudus moved on to it. Perfectly placed, Kudus should have scored, but a bouncing ball made it a little less simple and the Ghanaian didn't get over it, instead blasting it over the bar when it looked like he'd be passing into the net.

For 20 minutes, The Hammers were all over Brentford and looked dangerous. The midfield worked, and Ferguson led the line like a big striker should.

It was a promising debut for the young Irish forward. He looked mobile, smart and strong, with that key difference of looking comfortable as a striker, rather than doing a job like Paqueta and, sometimes, Bowen. West Ham need a player for their dangerous players like Bowen, Paqueta and Kudus to play off and around, and the potential for that was clear in his performance.

As much as the home side pushed and pushed, for all the possession they now gained, there was very little that Flekken had to do in the Brentford goal.

It was such a shame that this team hadn't started, for now Brentford were unable to pass and run through the middle of the park with ease. Had all these pieces come together at the start, with Brentford not a goal up and comfortable to sit on their lead and fill their half, this extra comfort in possession might have given The Hammers some space to exploit.

As it was, Brentford were happy to spoil. For all the nice passing, there was very little that was dangerous.

Scarles had a great shot blocked on the way to goal after hitting a driving effort from the edge of the box after a corner was headed clear, but it was a dash of excitement that was not a sign of more to come.

With little to shout about, a Bowen tumble in the box got everyone off their feet, but whilst they have been given, it was a little bit desperate and the ball quite out of the forward's control. Ferguson did well with 10 minutes left to combine with Bowen and muscle his way between two defenders to fire off a shot, but it was too close to Flekken.

Nothing came of a late siege, and it was another home defeat for West Ham this season. All they could take from the half was the control given when Ward-Prowse came on, a new option for the manager even if he's not quite a new signing, and the play of Ferguson. The little combination with Bowen might be the peak of that, a sign of some potential, of a unit in attack functioning together in a way the team has sorely lacked all season. It's scant, but it was there, and the rest of this season may well count on it.




Manager's Rating

Graham Potter 5/10: The starting team was all wrong and he couldn't do anything in the first half to make things better. The half-time changes were good, but they were rectifying clear errors of the start, and they still created next to nothing.

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Player Ratings

Alphonse Areola
Some good saves but his kicking is not good enough.


Aaron Wan-Bissaka
Probably the player whose game was most changed with the back four, from flying wing-back to a right back expected to slot into a three man defence when his side went forward. Made a couple important challenges, but does have a lazy streak when getting into shape.


Emerson Palmieri
A poor decision and challenge on the goal added to another performance where he looked unable to make any meaningful contribution. Would be lucky to keep his place.


Max Kilman
Too meek again today, and far too many loose passes forward, long balls that were hard to control or far short of the player he aimed for.


Konstantinos Mavropanos
Erratic and inconsistent, he at least had some very good moments to go with the general poor performance of the defence. Could be that he makes others far less confident, though.


Edson Alvarez
The only player in the first half who showed for the ball in deep areas and then didn?EUR(TM)t look baffled by having possession of the ball under pressure. He was a one-man midfield in the opening 45, the rest of the team so short of the required standards, but then formed a very good partnership with Ward-Prowse.


Tomas Soucek
It was a game that highlights why there are those who question his place in a passing team. He was uncomfortable and lost in a role where he needed to be assured and sharp on the ball.


Carlos Soler
He does look comfortable in a possession-based system, but he offers so little end product. You can see technical ability, yet none that makes any difference to the game.


Mohammed Kudus
A really poor performance from a player who looks completely shot of confidence. Didn?EUR(TM)t work in the centre, didn?EUR(TM)t work on the left, and he seems to have lost the ability to play with any instinct. Without that, he?EUR(TM)s much lesser of a player.


Jarrod Bowen
One of his poorer performances in a long time. Poor choices on the ball and looked very rusty. Far too easily pinned down by Lewis-Potter, who is not a full back and should be commended for the job he did.


Lucas Paqueta
Improved initially in the second half after an anonymous first half up front, but as the momentum faltered, he got worse and worse. Too loose with the ball.

Substitutes

Ollie Scarles
(Emerson 45?EUR(TM)) His pace is very useful to this team, and he looks more settled with the more experience he is given.


James Ward-Prowse
(Soucek 45?EUR(TM)) A busy and assured performance that balanced the midfield and allowed West Ham to pass the ball. Night and day in how the side functioned with him on the pitch.


Evan Ferguson
(Soler 45?EUR(TM)) Glimpses of what he can do and how he can improve this team.


Luis Guilherme
(Mavropanos 87?EUR(TM)) Not enough time to make any impact.

Match Facts

West Ham United: Alphonse Areola, Aaron Wan-Bissaka, Emerson Palmieri, Max Kilman, Konstantinos Mavropanos, Edson Alvarez, Tomas Soucek, Carlos Soler, Mohammed Kudus, Jarrod Bowen, Lucas Paqueta.

Goals: None.

Booked: None booked.           .

Sent Off: None sent off.     .

Brentford: .

Subs not used: .

Goals: .

Booked: None booked..

Sent off: None.

Referee: .

Attendance: 0.

Man of the Match: .