Brentford delivered a statement performance at the London Stadium, cruising to a 2-0 win over West Ham United to claim their first away points of the Premier League season. The result also extended their dominance over the Hammers to seven wins in nine league meetings, while newly appointed West Ham coach Nuno Espírito Santo endured a frustrating home debut.
The atmosphere inside the stadium was already tense, with a fan boycott leaving large sections of seats empty. West Ham had started positively in Nuno’s first game in charge last weekend, a 1-1 draw against Everton, but this time they never really got going. The hosts showed early intent, yet Brentford quickly took control through their sharp pressing and fluid attacking play.
Kevin Schade set the tone with an early shot into the side netting and two dangerous headers, before Tomáš Souček’s head injury briefly paused play. Once the game resumed, Keith Andrew’s men began to swarm forward. Dango Ouattara and Igor Thiago were electric, with Ouattara’s deflected shot narrowly missing and Thiago rattling the crossbar with a thunderous strike.
Brentford finally found their breakthrough just before halftime. A clever ball sliced open the Hammers’ defence, and Thiago’s effort squeezed past Alphonse Areola, who got a touch but couldn’t stop it from rolling over the line. The Brazilian almost doubled his tally moments later, only to see his second ruled out for offside.
At halftime, Nuno rang the changes, but Brentford stayed in control. Schade hit the crossbar again, while Jarrod Bowen wasted one of West Ham’s few openings by blazing over. The Hammers’ night went from bad to worse when Konstantinos Mavropanos limped off injured, reducing them to 10 men late on.
Sensing blood, Brentford killed the game in stoppage time. Substitute Mathias Jensen coolly finished from close range to make it 2-0, sealing a well-earned victory for the visitors.
For Nuno, it’s now one draw and one defeat in his first two matches and a reality check about the size of the challenge ahead. West Ham remain winless at home this season, their fourth straight home loss, marking their worst-ever start at the London Stadium.
After the game , Brentford via its official X handle posted the post match reaction of players thanking fans for their incredible support away from home earning them three Crucial points. They posted:
Brentford’s energy, pressing, and precision were too much for Nuno’s men. Thiago’s goal and work rate set the tone for the Bees, who finally look like rediscovering their sting while West Ham’s new era has begun with more questions than answers.
