Because Ivan Tony's first-half penalty after VAR review was enough to ensure Brentford won the Premier League for the first time in six games against Everton; Rafael Benitez's side skates lost for the fifth time in six games
Ivan Tony's 24th-minute penalty gave Brentford their first Premier League win in six games as Everton lost 1-0 on Super Sunday.
After Andros Townsend was penalized for his high-level mentorship of Frank Oneka after a VAR review, Tony decided on the quality of the game from the free throw spot. It was a sweet moment for Tony, who spoke midweek about not getting a fair chance under Rafael Benitez when the two were in Newcastle in 2018.
Everton fought valiantly to equalise, with Salomon Rondon missing two good chances at half-time, but they sought their first league win since September 25 – seven straight games – to continue with second-placed Liverpool visiting Goodison Park on Wednesday.
The result was Brentford moving up to 12th above Everton and the Toffee slipping to 14th, six points above the relegation zone.
Ivan Tony remained calm from 12 yards away
Brentford have lost three of their previous four league games against Everton, their first of their kind since they lost 6-1 away to the second tier in February 1954, but neither side was confident to play in the game.
It was shown in a low-key opening 20 minutes, but changed during the opening period, when Oneka reacted the fastest to Jordan Pickford's punch from the corner, caught inside the box by Townsend's high boots.
Pontus Jansson had a chance to get a penalty
Roy Keane: "I think it was the right decision, the dangerous game. If you look at Andros's face, he knows right away that they'll check it. It's an offensive player's tackle, if you lift your foot in the box – it's a penalty. ”
Referee Darren England initially waved for the game, but after consulting with VAR Jon Moss, awarded a penalty and Tony kept his composure and sent Pickford in the wrong way.
It was the first time brentford and Everton had met in the League Cup since September 2010. After a 1-1 draw at Griffin Park, the Bees took a 4-3 lead in the penalty shootout of the night, but when Landon picked up Lucas Digne's low cross to get a clever save from Alvaro Fernandez, the visiting team got a response almost immediately.
Everton had previously won five of their six Premier League games in London, as many as they had won in their previous 32 games in London, but when Ethan Pinnock stepped up to meet Sergi Kanos, they almost fell further behind. Corner kick, but his header went straight to Pickford.
Andros Townsend and Frank Oneka compete for possession
Everton's intricately organised attack lacked impact, and they were almost punished at break with five minutes left in the opening when Tony's cross was inadvertently bumped into Brian Mbemo's path by Digne, but Pickford read his intention to make a simple save on his left.
Digne's wild free-kick in a good position summed up Everton's half, sparking a large number of flights in search of warmth, but their penalty appeal was rejected when Charlie Goode appeared to have a chunk of Langdon's shirt in the moments leading up to the break.
Everton finally put some pressure on 10 minutes after starting over as Rondon's shot from the edge of the penalty area was blocked by Brentford's body in the area. Moments later, Abdoulaye Ducourt slid past Simmers Coleman's cross, but the ball landed low on the right side of Alex Iwobi to test Fernandez's position.
In the middle of the second quarter, Pontus Jansson clashed with Digne, and when Everton refused to kick the ball out of the game due to an injury to Rico Henry, the bees captain expressed his anger. This caused both Landon and Jansson to see yellow, and Benitez quickly turned to de Mallegre as the Spaniard's despair intensified.
Gray brought a greater sense of urgency as his demonic cross avoided Anthony Gordon at the far post after the snapshot was blocked by Pinnock, while Rondon's header from Coleman's cross was implanted a yard wide. Everton continued to investigate, but Brentford firmly recorded his first goal-free in eight Premier League games.
Brentford coach Thomas Frank: "We are very happy with the result. It was a huge victory, a huge victory. We played very well in the first half and deserved to be ahead. In the second half, Everton hit the ball more without hurting us.
"We have to look at things in the right light. We've just been promoted and Everton have invested a lot of money and are targeting European football. We regained a strong defensive mentality. In the last three games we have conceded too many chances and goals, but we still want to stay aggressive and high pressure. I think our defense today is unbreakable.
"It was a huge win because we haven't won in five games and deserve more in those games. In order to win and defend at the top level, I am happy. It's very important that we did that and hopefully it's a win and we can move on now. Alvaro (Fernandez) made two very big saves and it was the first time he had conceded a goal in the Premier League, so it was fantastic for him.
Frank showed his joy when he was full-time
"Earlier this week I said Ivan (Tony) is the best free thrower in the world and he proved that again today, so the good thing I like about Ivan is that in this case you need to be a strong and composed personality. You have to enjoy the pressure and keep the level you have to practice. He does it every day and that's why he's so good. ”
Everton boss Rafael Benitez: "I think we had a lot of crosses, [away from home] with 14 shots on goal, so the team kept pushing and shoving. We try to create, but it's not easy because there are a lot of bodies out there.
"We were fine. We gave them some hope in the first half, but in the second half we wanted to push. Teams are doing what they have to do – push, push. The quality and movement of the final pass makes a difference with a team with a lot of players behind the ball.
"We can understand the frustration of the fans because we are also frustrated, but you can't complain about the effort of the players, they tried from the beginning of the game and crossed many times. We were obviously disappointed because we didn't want to lose.
"We've been short of key players, so we didn't expect this bad game. We shouldn't have lost, the reality is that the team gave everything on the pitch. You can see the unity of the players. If we continue to work this way, hopefully we can eventually shoot more precisely.
"You can see from the beginning of the season what we have the ability to do and once the players are back to health, I believe we can do it again.
Tony faces West Moscowlman in Everton
"The connection between the fans and the players last season wasn't great, but you can see better at the start of the season. In order to restore this connection, the fans want the players to give everything, and today they can't complain because the players gave everything. I can't blame any player. I can't blame.
"Every game is important to us. Obviously the next one is more important because it's a derby. We must learn from the mistakes we have made.
"When you lose a game, it's not easy. That's football, sometimes like today, you have a chance, you push, but it's not enough. The only thing to do is to keep attacking and try not to make these mistakes defensively. ”
Tony celebrated after scoring for the winner for Brentford
Before the reunion, Tony said that Benitez's failure to give him a chance to shine in Newcastle was a "blessing in disguise". In 2018, when the club sold Tony to St. Petersburg, the Spaniard took charge of Newcastle.
The striker has since rebuilt his career, scoring a record number of goals in last season's Championship as the Bees advanced.
Here, he plagued the troubled Everton boss with his iconic penalty – backing Thomas Frank's claim that he was "the best penalty shootout in the world" – but it was his defensive work as much as anything else that made him a standout player in the game.
Alvaro Fernandez made two major saves for Brentford
Tony completed four clearances, more than any other team-mate, while only Charlie Goode (9) and Christian Norgaard (13) regained possession more than he (8).
Brentford's all eight home goals in the Premier League this season have been scored by different players, with Tony scoring his first home goal in the game in his ninth such game for the Bees and former club Newcastle United.
Since the start of last season, Tony has scored more penalties in the league (excluding play-offs) than any other player in English football's top four (11) class and has not missed a single penalty.