Brentford (a); The Review

Random star performer

Christoph Zimmermann – an absolute rock at the back once again, always in the right place at the right time to put in a tackle or block, and at the other end he even chipped in an assist for the winning goal. All that was missing was a finish to his unexpected barnstorming run shortly before half time in which he ploughed his way through Brentford’s midfield before bouncing off several defenders, only being thwarted at the last. The German fourth division’s loss has very much been our gain.

Moment of the match

Aside from the aforementioned Zimmermann surge, it would be churlish to overlook yet another Madders Masterpiece, this time incorporating a ‘see ya’ nutmeg and a perfectly placed curling finish into the top corner from miles out. Word is catching on about his talent well beyond the bubbles of East Anglia or the Championship – all we can do is wait and see what his future holds, and in the meantime feel privileged to enjoy goals like that.

Farke watch

Another away day tactical masterclass – it looked like one anyway, with the defence well organised from side to side and back to front in repelling Brentford’s attacks, which came increasingly incessantly in the second half. The plan was aided, of course, by the sheer reliability of Angus Gunn in plucking crosses out of the air. Perhaps sensible not to chuck the new boys in or off the bench at such short notice and in such a scenario – injuries pending, there are plenty of possibilities as to where he goes with next Saturday’s team.

Biggest positive to take

Another away game, another clean sheet and three points – and all the more impressive to achieve that alongside the extremely rare phenomenon of the ‘Reverse Along Come Norwich’, with Brentford’s long-running unbeaten home run in the league coming to a juddering halt.

Weekend whinge

Nothing much to moan about on the pitch this week, but it was a significant weekend on the rails, with City fans travelling to Brentford enjoying that rare treat of an uninterrupted weekend mainline services between Norwich and London. I hope everyone enjoyed it, because the next direct train on a Saturday won’t be until April.

Of course, work has to be done on the railways, and weekends are indeed probably the best time to do it. But this has been going on for years now, and I’ve pretty much had my fill of rail replacement coaches, Ingatestone Station (is Ingatestone even a place, or just an elaborate joke?) and the eastern extremities of the Central Line. Network Rail, please show mercy on us.

Atmosphere rating

This was our first trip to Griffin Park with a Saturday 3pm kick-off since, as far as I can work out, 26th September 1959 (we won 4-3), allowing daylight enjoyment of the many evocative elements of a ground which sadly is not long for this world. An early goal coupled with a backs-to-the-wall mentality from both players and fans made for a very good atmosphere. Things have been pretty enjoyable recently on the road for the travelling regulars – though Derby and Wolves next up make for a pair of tough away assignments.

Summary

Another away game, another 1-0 win courtesy of a Madders long-range special…standard stuff, really. This was a properly hard-fought win, but a well deserved one. Although we clearly lucked out that Brentford’s goal threat Lasse Vibe was otherwise engaged with, according to reports, negotiating a move to China, they still took some shutting out. Madders stole the headlines – hope the Chinese haven’t been reading them – but there were strong performances all over the pitch, notably from Harrison Reed in an unfamiliar position and, perhaps aware there’s another striker in town, Nelson Oliveira.

Back it is to the relative discomforts of home soil at the weekend, but there’ll be expectation and excitement in the air to see if and how the new faces can add that certain something we’ve been missing in NR1.