Rico Henry scored the winner as Brentford came from behind to beat Everton in a rip-roaring Premier League encounter. The Bees fell behind early on before the hosts were reduced to ten men. A deflected Yoane Wissa shot levelled it up and the same man headed a second equaliser after the break. Henry headed home the winner moments later.
The final 3-2 score line only tells a part of the story. Everton ended the match with nine men and only had ten on the pitch when they scored their second goal, a penalty just before half time. But Brentford used the extra man to their advantage in the second period. Wissa headed home before Henry powered in at the far post to seal a memorable win.
The home side flew out of the blocks. They had a lot of the ball in the early stages and worked incredibly hard when they did not have it. The hosts forced Brentford to play much of the first 15 minutes in their own half and profited when The Bees made errors.
The first goal came when Mads Bech and Rico Henry failed to communicate in Brentford’s left back area and Anthony Gordon nipped on to the ball. Bech brought him down, conceding a free kick and earning a caution. Gordon whipped the free kick to the near post where Richarlison got in front of the defence. The touch from Richarlison took the ball towards the far post, it flicked Dominic Calvert-Lewin and rolled in, despite the efforts of Bech to clear. The goal was awarded to Calvert-Lewin, who got the final touch, and Everton were ahead.
The goal had been coming for the hosts, who created some good chances in the first ten minutes. Vitalii Mykolenko smashed a shot well wide when he got on to a half cleared corner and a long ball caused confusion soon after. Calvert-Lewin flicked it on, Gordon got a toe to it, forcing David Raya to save. The ball looped up and Richarlison, on the stretch and under pressure from Henry, could only head wide.
Richarlison volleyed an Alexi Iwobi ball wide soon after and Everton got their goal after a frantic ten minutes. There had also been time for Brentford to go close at the other end. Ivan Toney met a Christian Eriksen free kick and headed it narrowly over.
The game slowed down a fraction after the goal and Brentford started to build some possession. Eriksen dropped a fraction deeper to get on the ball and he was able to link with Mathias Jensen to get Brentford moving forward.
For all Brentford were building through midfield, the key moment in the game came in a far more direct manner. The Bees had to defend their penalty area and Kristoffer Ajer blocked an effort from Richarlison. The ball dropped to Jensen, and he lashed it up the pitch. Toney started his run from his own half and got in behind Jarrad Branthwaite and went to ground when his heels were clipped. Referee Michael Oliver saw that Toney had a clear goal scoring opportunity and sent Brathwaite off.
Eriksen curled the free kick inches wide as Brentford looked to punish Everton further and The Bees steadily took control of the match, using the extra man. Eriksen and Jensen found pockets of space in midfield and The Bees pushed Everton back. Ajer and Henry got forward from full back and chances started to come.
Toney flicked a Pontus Jansson pass in to the path of Jensen. The ball bounced awkwardly and a tackle from Iwobi prevented Jensen getting a shot away. The ball bounced off Jensen and flew wide. Jensen snatched at another chance, pushing it wide, when a Henry cross was half cleared, and Raya had to save a long range effort from André Gomes at the other end.
The equaliser Brentford had been threatening came just past the half hour. An Eriksen corner was played deep and headed back by Jansson. Everton tried to clear, and Wissa came out with the ball. He found Jensen, who opened up Everton with a pass to Toney. The ball flew across the face of goal and when Wissa smashed it back across, it flicked off Séamus Coleman and flew past Jordan Pickford.
That only served to crank up the pace of the game and the noise in the stadium. Brentford seemed to have control, but Abdoulaye Doucouré had a sight of goal when a free kick was half cleared a little frantically and lashed it well over. Henry had a volley saved for The Bees and Eriksen picked out Toney in behind soon after. The striker bent his run well and met the ball first-time but did not get enough contact to beat Pickford.
There was a great chance for Brentford when Jensen picked out Bryan Mbeumo on the right. He weaved inside and let fly with a curling shot that Pickford pushed out. It only went as far as Jensen and Everton were able to get defenders in place to block the shot. Iwobi eventually got in the way of an effort that lacked real power.
Out of nothing, Everton scored just before half time. Calvert-Lewin flicked on a long ball and Richarlison got between Bech and Jansson. He felt the arm of Bech on his chest and went down. Mr Oliver pointed to the spot and Video Assistant Referee Darren England confirmed the decision. Richarlison took the spot kick and placed it down the middle as Raya dived right.
A crazy first time, full of passion and incident, ended with the home side in front. But Brentford had the extra man and 45 minutes to salvage something from their afternoon. It almost got worse just after the break when Richarlison got away on the left and smashed a cross-cum-shot across the face of goal. Any touch would have given Everton breathing space, but none was coming.
The Bees changed shape at the break. They introduced Vitaly Janelt and put him in a back three with Ajer and Jansson. Mbeumo and Henry took over as wing backs. There was a further attacking change before the hour with Josh Dasilva brought on for Ajer as The Bees went for the jugular.
Wissa lashed wide before an Eriksen cross dropped for Jensen 15 yards out. His shot was powerful enough to trouble Pickford but hit Toney. Pickford had to make a save from an Eriksen free kick and as the game went past the hour mark, Brentford continued to drive forward. Everton sat deeper and deeper and the breakthrough came.
The first of the two quickfire goals came from a corner on the left. Eriksen lifted it in with his near post and Wissa flicked a header out of the reach of Pickford and in to the far corner. Wissa timed his run perfectly and the header arced in to the far corner to level the match.
It was only level for a matter of seconds. Brentford built possession patiently on the right and waited for Christian Nørgaard to join in from his right centre back position. He lifted a cross to the far post and Henry rose to head home. Gordon refused to track Henry and Iwobi stood and watched as Henry headed the ball back the direction it came and in to the net.
Everton had built a second half plan on defending a 2-1 lead they had at the interval and had to change it. They made attacking substitutions and pushed Richarlison further forward. But that left space for Brentford to counter-attack and there were chances to kill the game off. A cross from Dasilva was cleared as far as Henry, but his shot lacked the power to trouble Pickford. Dasilva then darted forward as part of a four-on-three break and fed Mbeumo, but the shot flew well over.
Eriksen bent a shot wide for The Bees and Everton could have levelled when Doucouré met a header at the far post, but he could not hit the target. Everton started to take the initiative but any chance they had disappeared with two minutes remaining. Solomon Rondón, who had been on the pitch for four minutes and barely touched the ball, was dismissed for a horrific foul on Henry. He went in with two feet on the touchline and although only one caught the Brentford man, it was above the ankle. Mr Oliver had no hesitation in showing a red card.
That just about settled matters. There was still a chance for Brentford to grab a fourth when Dasilva crossed for Henry at the far post. His nod down fell to Eriksen, and the shot beat Pickford. Mason Holgate cleared off the line but that only lessened the victory for The Bees, who completed a double over Everton in their final away match of the campaign.
Everton: Pickford; Iwobi, Coleman (sub Rondón 84 mins), Branthwaite, Holgate, Mykolenko; Gomes (sub Kenny 72 mins), Doucouré; Richarlison, Calvert-Lewin, Gordon (sub Gray 72 mins)
Subs (not used): Begovic, Allan, Davies, Alli, Price, Welch
Sent Off: Branthwaite (18 mins), Rondón (88 mins)
Brentford: Raya; Ajer (sub Dasilva 59 mins), Jansson, Bech (sub Janelt h/t), Henry; Jensen, Nørgaard, Eriksen; Mbeumo, Toney, Wissa (sub Roerslev 76 mins)
Subs (not used): Lössl, Jeanvier, Stevens, Canós, Baptiste, Peart-Harris
Bookings: Bech (10 mins), Nørgaard (27 mins), Ajer (40 mins)