Goals from Bryan Mbeumo and Yoane Wissa ensured Brentford got off to a flying start with a 2-1 victory over Crystal Palace at the G-tech Community Stadium, despite Jordan Ayew’s late involvement.
Before Jordan’s auditioning – with 20 minutes to go – the game was perfectly hanging in the balance at one-all.
However, six minutes from his introduction, Yoane Wissa gave the Bees a cushion, adding to Bryan Mbeumo’s finish.
The win snapped Palace’s seven-game unbeaten run from last season, with Brantford recording their first-ever Premier League win – at the seventh time of asking – against their London rivals.
Palace never seemed to get going, despite being given a lifeline when Ethan Pinnock inadvertently put through his net after 56 minutes.
The Eagles’ attack lacked quality and sharpness, with Jean Philippe Mateta looking leggy after going all the way to the Olympic Games men’s football final with France, while his French and former Palace teammate Michael Olise’s (who is now with Bayern Munich) industriousness was needed in the final third.
Irrespective of this, Oliver Glasner had to make do with what he had on the bench and rang the changes after the interval; Odsonne Edouard took the place of unproductive Mateta before Daichi Kamada made way for Jordan Ayew.
The substitutes could add little to the outcome of the game as Wissa bundled his way to find the net and seal all three points for Brentford.
Jordan exit nigh
Jordan Ayew, who has been linked with a move to Leicester City, was introduced as a second-half substitute for Palace in place of new signing Daichi Kamada.
However, the 32-year-old was off the game’s pace and struggled to assert himself to make the needed impact. The Ghanaian has seen his game time under new manager Oliver Glasner reduced; he had started two of five games prior to the meeting against Brentford, playing a total of 158 minutes out of the available 450 minutes on offer in that period.
This is in contrast to starting the first five games of the Glasner era, where he was instrumental (1 goal and assist) in a routine 3-0 victory over Burnley.
The forward has been handed a periphery role and is yet to complete a game for Palace since Roy Hodgson’s farewell league outing at Goodison on February 19, 2024.
Jordan seems to have fallen out of favour and further down the pecking order for Oliver Glasner. Coming off the back of his most impactful Premier League season since the 2018/19 season — scoring four times and providing 7 assists — Jordan was expected to feature prominently for Palace but is yet to be seen.
His performances in pre-season (two goals and an assist across 4 games) further consolidated this fact, as he pushed to nail down a starting berth. The former Frankfurt manager, nonetheless, seems to have other ideas with Jordan not an integral member of his squad.
With the transfer window’s deadline on August 31, Jordan still has time, even if mulling for now, to decide on his bleak future.
By: Andrews Sefa Bamfo
