Wissa wins it for the Bess!

Bryan Mbeumo and Yoane Wissa once again stepped up in the absence of Ivan Toney as they fired Brentford FC to a 2-1 win over Crystal Palace.

Mbeumo and Wissa proved to be enough for Crystal Palace. After a few minutes into the game, Crystal Palace were left fuming after referee Sam Barrott controversially disallowed a goal from Eberechi Eze. The midfielder curled a free-kick from out wide directly inside the near post, only for Barrott to penalise Will Hughes for a foul on Nathan Collins.

Replays showed there was no real offence but, according to a post on X from the Premier League, VAR Peter Bankes was unable to intervene as the whistle was blown before the ball hit the net. Real moment of worry for Palace came after a few minutes when Wissa played in Mbeumo, who darted into the area, cut inside Marc Guehi on to his left foot and buried his shot into the corner.

Palace equalised 10 minutes after the break when Tyrick Mitchell’s cross from the left was headed back across goal by Daniel Munoz and prodded into his own net by the unfortunate Ethan Pinnock. Instead, Brentford went back ahead after 76 minutes when Dean Henderson palmed out Collins’ deflected shot. It fell right into the path of Wissa.

NO TONEY NO PROBLEM

Ivan Toney was left out of the matchday squad due to ongoing transfer speculation surrounding the striker, Bees boss Thomas Frank confirmed.

The England forward is linked with a move away from the Brentford Community Stadium, with Arsenal, Manchester United and Chelsea all reportedly interested, as are Saudi Pro League side Al-Ahli.

Frank initially stated Toney, who missed the first half of last season through suspension, would be available for Brentford's first game of this campaign during his pre-match press conference.

However, the Dane believes the Bees have demonstrated their ability to cope without his services. "There are a lot of things going on with Ivan, and there's some transfer interest. Because of all that, we decided not to involve him in the squad," Frank told Sky Sports.

It's the classic one - I couldn't give too much the day before. He's been a fantastic player for us, but we showed last year, especially, that we can deal without him."

When asked if Toney had played his final game in a Brentford shirt, the head coach added: "Who knows? There's interest, but there's nothing close."