Brentford’s Schade Shines in 4-3 Thriller Over Manchester United at Gtech

 Brentford extended their unbeaten Premier League run to five matches with a pulsating 4-3 victory over Manchester United at the Gtech Community Stadium, boosting their hopes of European qualification while deepening United’s woes with a sixth consecutive league winless game. 

The Bees, propelled by a brace from Kevin Schade, a Luke Shaw own goal, and a Yoane Wissa tap-in, overcame an early deficit to secure their third straight win, climbing to ninth in the Premier League table. The match, a seven-goal spectacle, highlighted Brentford’s attacking prowess and exposed United’s defensive frailties, despite a late rally from the visitors.

Brentford started brightly, with Schade nearly scoring twice in the opening minutes. He first steered a cross just wide with United goalkeeper Altay Bayındır caught out of position, then slid in at the back post but missed narrowly. Against the run of play, United took the lead in the 14th minute with their only first-half shot. Alejandro Garnacho broke down the left, delivering a precise low cross for Mason Mount to tap in his second goal for the club—his first, coincidentally, also came against Brentford in a 1-1 draw in March 2024. The goal stunned the home crowd, but Brentford responded with relentless pressure, exploiting United’s youthful, rotated lineup, which averaged just 22 years and 270 days, the youngest in Premier League history.

The Bees equalized in the 27th minute after Michael Kayode’s long throw caused chaos in United’s box. Mikkel Damsgaard’s prodded volley deflected off Shaw, looping over Bayındır for an own goal. Six minutes later, Brentford took the lead when Christian Nørgaard’s pinpoint cross found Schade, who powered a header past Bayındır. Controversy surrounded the goal, as United’s Matthijs de Ligt was down injured after a clash with Wissa, but referee Anthony Taylor allowed play to continue, prompting protests from the visitors. Brentford nearly extended their lead before halftime, with Bayındır parrying Schade’s effort and making a stunning close-range save to deny Nørgaard’s header.

United showed signs of life early in the second half, with Mount firing two tame shots that failed to trouble Brentford goalkeeper Mark Flekken. However, Brentford’s pressure remained relentless, with Kayode’s long throws continuing to unsettle United’s defense. In the 70th minute, Schade struck again, rising high to head in a whipped cross from Bryan Mbeumo, whose delivery was slightly deflected but perfectly placed. Four minutes later, Brentford made it 4-1 with a flowing move: Mathias Jensen’s incisive pass found Kayode, who squared for Wissa to tap into an empty net, marking his 18th Premier League goal of the season.

United mounted a late comeback to make the final minutes tense. In the 82nd minute, Garnacho exchanged passes with substitute Christian Eriksen and curled a stunning 25-yard shot into the top corner, leaving Flekken rooted. In the 95th minute, substitute Amad Diallo cut in from the right and fired a low shot that slipped through Flekken’s legs, reducing the deficit to 4-3 with an assist from Manuel Ugarte. 

Despite seven minutes of stoppage time, Brentford held firm, with Sepp van den Berg’s crucial block denying United’s Chido Obi a late equalizer. The victory, only Brentford’s second in 13 head-to-heads against United, marked their third consecutive Premier League win, lifting them to ninth, just one point behind eighth-placed Bournemouth, a position that could secure UEFA Conference League qualification.

For Manchester United, the defeat was their 16th in the Premier League this season, matching a club record from 1989-90, and their sixth straight game without a win, their worst run since 2015. Manager Rúben Amorim, who made eight changes following a 3-0 Europa League semi-final first-leg win over Athletic Bilbao on May 1, faced criticism for his reliance on a youthful squad, though he defended the rotation ahead of the second leg on May 8. 

United’s fans, undeterred, sang about reaching the Europa League final in Bilbao, but the loss underscored their domestic struggles, with the team languishing in 15th place. Brentford’s momentum, driven by Schade’s aerial dominance and Wissa’s clinical finishing, positions them as serious contenders for European football, while United must regroup for their European ambitions.