Rico Henry scored the winner as Brentford came from behind to beat Everton in a rip-roaring Premier League encounter. The Bees fell behind early on before the hosts were reduced to ten men. A deflected Yoane Wissa shot levelled it up and the same man headed a second equaliser after the break. Henry headed home the winner moments later.
The final 3-2 scoreline only tells a part of the story. Everton ended the match with nine men and only had ten on the pitch when they scored their second goal, a penalty just before halftime. But Brentford used the extra man to their advantage in the second period. Wissa headed home before Henry powered in at the far post to seal a memorable win.
The home side flew out of the blocks. They had a lot of the ball in the early stages and worked incredibly hard when they did not have it. The hosts forced Brentford to play much of the first 15 minutes in their own half and profited when The Bees made errors.
The first goal came when Mads Bech and Rico Henry failed to communicate in Brentford’s left back area and Anthony Gordon nipped on to the ball. Bech brought him down, conceding a free kick and earning a caution. Gordon whipped the free kick to the near post where Richarlison got in front of the defence. The touch from Richarlison took the ball towards the far post, it flicked Dominic Calvert-Lewin and rolled in, despite the efforts of Bech to clear. The goal was awarded to Calvert-Lewin, who got the final touch, and Everton were ahead.
The goal had been coming for the hosts, who created some good chances in the first ten minutes.
Richarlison volleyed an Alexi Iwobi ball wide soon after and Everton got their goal after a frantic ten minutes. There had also been time for Brentford to go close at the other end. Ivan Toney met a Christian Eriksen free kick and headed it narrowly over.
The game slowed down a fraction after the goal and Brentford started to build some possession.
For all Brentford were building through midfield, the key moment in the game came in a far more direct manner. The Bees had to defend their penalty area and Kristoffer Ajer blocked an effort from Richarlison. The ball dropped to Jensen, and he lashed it up the pitch. Toney started his run from his own half and got in behind Jarrad Branthwaite and went to ground when his heels were clipped. Referee Michael Oliver saw that Toney had a clear goal scoring opportunity and sent Brathwaite off.
The equaliser Brentford had been threatening came just past the half hour. An Eriksen corner was played deep and headed back by Jansson. Everton tried to clear, and Wissa came out with the ball. He found Jensen, who opened up Everton with a pass to Toney. The ball flew across the face of goal and when Wissa smashed it back across, it flicked off Séamus Coleman and flew past Jordan Pickford.
That only served to crank up the pace of the game and the noise in the stadium.
Out of nothing, Everton scored just before half time. Calvert-Lewin flicked on a long ball and Richarlison got between Bech and Jansson. He felt the arm of Bech on his chest and went down. Mr Oliver pointed to the spot and Video Assistant Referee Darren England confirmed the decision. Richarlison took the spot kick and placed it down the middle as Raya dived right.
A crazy first time, full of passion and incident, ended with the home side in front. But Brentford had the extra man and 45 minutes to salvage something from their afternoon.
The first of the two quickfire goals came from a corner on the left. Eriksen lifted it in with his near post and Wissa flicked a header out of the reach of Pickford and in to the far corner. Wissa timed his run perfectly and the header arced in to the far corner to level the match.
It was only level for a matter of seconds. Brentford built possession patiently on the right and waited for Christian Nørgaard to join in from his right centre back position. He lifted a cross to the far post and Henry rose to head home. Gordon refused to track Henry and Iwobi stood and watched as Henry headed the ball back the direction it came and in to the net.
Everton had built a second half plan on defending a 2-1 lead they had at the interval and had to change it. They made attacking substitutions and pushed Richarlison further forward. But that left space for Brentford to counter-attack and there were chances to kill the game off. A cross from Dasilva was cleared as far as Henry, but his shot lacked the power to trouble Pickford. Dasilva then darted forward as part of a four-on-three break and fed Mbeumo, but the shot flew well over.
Eriksen bent a shot wide for The Bees and Everton could have levelled when Doucouré met a header at the far post, but he could not hit the target. Everton started to take the initiative but any chance they had disappeared with two minutes remaining. Solomon Rondón, who had been on the pitch for four minutes and barely touched the ball, was dismissed for a horrific foul on Henry. He went in with two feet on the touchline and although only one caught the Brentford man, it was above the ankle. Mr Oliver had no hesitation in showing a red card.
That just about settled matters. There was still a chance for Brentford to grab a fourth when Dasilva crossed for Henry at the far post. His nod down fell to Eriksen, and the shot beat Pickford. Mason Holgate cleared off the line but that only lessened the victory for The Bees, who completed a double over Everton in their final away match of the campaign.
