Brentford came from behind to pick up a crucial win in the Championship against fellow promotion hopefuls Bournemouth with a 2-1 win at the Brentford Community Stadium on Wednesday night.
Dominic Solanke gave the visitors the lead after a strong start from the Cherries. The 23-year-old finished off an exquisite passing move by Jason Tindall’s side, with Lloyd Kelly producing an excellent cross that was tapped home by the striker from close range.
However, Thomas Frank’s side responded strongly, with midfielder Mathias Jensen pulling the strings for the Bees on the night. The Dane was also the architect of Brentford’s equaliser, delivering the corner that was headed home by fellow-countryman Henrik Dalsgaard.
The West London club were able to find the winner in the second half as Bryan Mbeumo produced a perfect cross for substitute Tarique Fosu to head home.
Brentford climbed into the automatic promotion places after the win, but Jensen was arguably the busiest of the Bees on the night.
Wednesday night’s man of the match was simply everywhere. At times the Dane was happy to sit back in a holding position whilst his teammates cruised forward, but the 24-year-old was certainly involved in the vast majority of Brentford’s best play on the night.
With the assist for Dalsgaard’s equaliser, Jensen’s performance grew in stature as the game progressed. He knocked the ball around with ease, won plenty of challenges and made numerous interceptions; a complete midfielder’s performance.
The Dane will be disappointed that he didn’t get himself onto the score sheet though, with a fantastic opportunity late on to seal the points for his side. Whilst Bournemouth were pushing for an equaliser, they were caught out and Jensen was played through one-on-one by Ivan Toney, however, the midfielder’s effort was saved by Asmir Begovic in the Cherries goal.
A goal would’ve been a rarity though, with the 24-year-old scoring just twice thus far in his 68 Brentford appearances.
Having signed for a fee of around £3m from Celta Vigo last summer, the midfielder has been a key cog in Frank’s Brentford machine, proving a useful asset in their fast-paced, forward-thinking play.
Frank himself was full of praise for his fellow countryman after the game, labelling Jensen “a top, top midfielder” but admitted the Dane “requires a bit more experience”.
However, if Mathias Jensen continues to impress in the middle of the park for Brentford, particularly in big games such as the Bournemouth contest, then the Bees will certainly have an excellent shot once again at promotion to the Premier League.
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