Brentford and Burnley produced a Premier League classic, with the Bees coming out 4-3 winners in an edge-of-the-seat thriller.
They threw away a three-goal lead before midfielder Mikkel Damsgaard’s 93rd-minute goal helped them edge past Burnley, but that was far from the end of the drama at Turf Moor.
Clarets striker Ashley Barnes thought he had equalised in the 98th minute, only for the goal to be ruled out by the video assistant referee (VAR) for a handball which needed four minutes and two different angles to be confirmed.
It was not the straightforward win that Brentford manager Keith Andrews would have hoped for to celebrate signing a new contract until 2032 this week.
“It had a bit of everything,” Andrews told BBC Match of the Day. “The neutrals will be very pleased, but it’s far too much drama for my liking.”
Nonetheless, the gritty victory has Brentford sitting seventh in the table, trailing fifth-placed Liverpool by five points.
With only 10 games left of their season, it means Brentford are closer than ever to playing in Europe for the first time.
“Definitely they can start dreaming about European football,” former England women’s captain Steph Houghton told BBC Football Focus.
“They believe in who they are and there is a real humility about them.”
Former Arsenal and England defender Martin Keown said: “It’s the next step. Five points away from the top five is amazing. Who would have predicted that?”
The remarkable position Brentford find themselves is credit to Andrews, who – it is easy to forget – is in his debut season as a manager.
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