Brentford pulled off a thrilling second-half comeback to beat Newcastle United 3–1 at the Gtech Community Stadium on Saturday, taking full advantage of a red card and late momentum to grab all three points. The win, their fourth in six home league matches, keeps their strong home record alive and piles more pressure on Eddie Howe’s struggling side, who are still without an away win in nine Premier League outings.
Newcastle actually looked the better side early on as they aimed to overturn their last league defeat, which ended in another 3-1 thrashing, this time at the hands of West Ham. They got their breakthrough in the 28th minute when Harvey Barnes, starting in place of the injured Anthony Gordon, produced a bit of magic. He danced through Michael Kayode and Yehor Yarmoliuk before coolly sliding the ball past Caoimhín Kelleher. It was a classy finish, and, for a while, it seemed like Newcastle had control of the game.
But Brentford were never out of it. Their persistence, especially from Michael Kayode’s booming long throws, started to unsettle the visitors. The equaliser came just after the restart when one of Kayode’s trademark throws caused chaos in the box. Nick Pope hesitated, and Kevin Schade pounced with a close-range header to make it 1–1.
Softfootball understands that the goal changed everything. Suddenly the home crowd was alive, and the game turned chaotic. Brentford thought they’d won a penalty when Dan Burn clattered into Dango Ouattara, but referee Stuart Attwell somehow booked the winger for diving. VAR backed the decision, calling the contact “minimal”, which sparked outrage in the stands.
Brentford posted the mood of the team after the victory in a video via the team’s official X account.
Watch the video below:
Just minutes later, justice arrived, and with it, controversy again. Burn brought down Ouattara a second time in the box, and this time Attwell pointed straight to the spot, flashing a second yellow for the Newcastle defender. Substitute keeper Aaron Ramsdale, who had replaced the injured Pope, faced the penalty, but Igor Thiago made no mistake, burying it calmly to give Brentford the lead.
Brentford manager Keith Andrew in a post-match reaction posted via the team’s official X account, praised the mentality of the team, especially in the second half.
Watch the video below:
Down to ten men, Newcastle collapsed. In stoppage time, a loose ball from Malick Thiaw’s challenge fell kindly for Thiago, and the Brazilian striker swept home his second of the game to seal the 3–1 win. This will be their second win in three games after claiming a 5-nil victory against Grimsby in the EFL; surprisingly, this is also Brentford’s fourth win in their last five games.
For Brentford, it was a huge result, another example of their resilience and growing confidence at home. For Newcastle, though, the defeat deepens an already worrying slump, marking their worst start to a Premier League season under Eddie Howe.
