All eyes were on Ivan Toney before Brentford’s west London derby against Fulham. Brentford had a two-week break following their 1-1 draw with Crystal Palace on February 18 and it had been eventful.
Last Tuesday, the news emerged that Toney has pleaded guilty to some of the Football Association’s charges against him for alleged gambling activity but is contesting others.
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Toney released a statement on social media, saying he was “shocked and disappointed” by the speculation and that “my lawyers will be writing to the FA to request that they conduct a leak inquiry”.
The situation could have become a huge distraction, but the 26-year-old showed no signs of being affected, scoring his 15th Premier League goal of the season in Brentford’s 3-2 victory. Only Erling Haaland (27) and Harry Kane (18) have better records, while he has now converted 22 penalties in a row.
10/10 – Only Yaya Touré (11/11) has a better 100% record from the penalty spot in Premier League history than Ivan Toney (10/10). Inevitable. pic.twitter.com/eqMaSw7Rzi
— OptaJoe (@OptaJoe) March 6, 2023
Toney played with a smile on his face and was brimming with energy. He mimicked Aleksandar Mitrovic’s goal celebration and nearly executed an audacious pass with his bum, but it was cut out at the last second before it reached Yoane Wissa.
Toney commanded everybody’s attention, yet the real star of the show was Mikkel Damsgaard. Brentford supporters have been waiting patiently for a real glimpse of the 22-year-old’s talent since he joined the club from Sampdoria last summer for around €14million (£12.4m; $14.9m).
He was sensational for Denmark during their run to the semi-finals of the European Championships in 2021 and scored a stunning free kick against England in the last four. In the past 18 months though, Damsgaard has had to recover from knee surgery and was diagnosed with a form of arthritis.
There was excitement when he joined Brentford but, apart from some cute flicks and tricks, he had not contributed anything substantial — until now. He was always going to need time to build up his fitness and adjust to his new environment.
Damsgaard primarily played on the left wing for Sampdoria, but Brentford are convinced they can transform him into a playmaker. Damsgaard made only his second start of the campaign against Fulham and was supported in central midfield by his international colleagues Christian Norgaard and Mathias Jensen.
Damsgaard’s display against Fulham was his best for Brentford (Photo: Gaspafotos/MB Media/Getty Images)The first encouraging sign arrived in the fourth minute when he cleverly flicked the ball over Fulham’s defence and into Bryan Mbeumo’s path. Mbeumo burst into the box and should have slotted the ball into the bottom corner, but was denied by Bernd Leno’s save.
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Damsgaard then picked up possession in the centre circle and had the vision to quickly execute a pass that split Fulham’s defence open. Wissa chased after it and was narrowly beaten by Kenny Tete.
The 22-year-old was constantly pushing and probing for new ways to unlock Fulham’s defence. His dribbling caught the eye and Sasa Lukic was booked for bringing him down on the edge of the box shortly before half-time.
It was intriguing Frank decided to pick Damsgaard instead of Josh Dasilva. Before Monday night, Dasilva had been on the pitch for 1,061 minutes in the top flight this season compared to Damsgaard’s 303. The Arsenal academy product has popped up in crucial moments, including scoring a late equaliser against Leicester City on the opening day.
They are both talented attackers but Damsgaard arguably holds the advantage because of his defensive work. One of the reasons Brentford signed Damsgaard is because of his pressing ability and there were several occasions against Fulham when this was on full display. He made the game’s joint-highest number of interceptions (three, same as Tete) and in one scenario, he chased down Andreas Pereira before making a crucial tackle. He did concede the free kick from which Fulham scored their first goal after a clumsy challenge on Harrison Reed.
Damsgaard has still not scored or provided an assist, but this felt like a breakout performance.
“I’m so pleased for him,” Frank said. “He is a player we feel privileged we could make a deal with in the summer. The potential he showed in the Euros was big. Everyone knows to be a top footballer you need to perform every week. But then he was out for a year, more or less.
“We had to build him up. He has been impatient and I have been, too. But he deserves a lot of credit for his attitude and approach to hard work, especially since he came back from the World Cup. The last three or four weeks he trained so well, with intensity and sharp, offensive actions.
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“You could see he was so sharp. Without getting too carried away, it was very promising. In a local derby against Fulham, who play with high intensity, he coped with it and did his defensive duties. I played him because of his offensive qualities and we saw them in quite a few moments.”
Brentford remain in ninth place but are level on 38 points with Brighton & Hove Albion, only a point behind Fulham and have two games in hand over them. Frank’s side are unbeaten in 12 matches and it is becoming increasingly difficult to ignore the prospect of qualifying for European competition next season.
If Damsgaard can replicate this level of performance more often, he will play a big role in trying to help Brentford achieve that dream.
(Top photo: Visionhaus/Getty Images)
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