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Brentford completed their first league double over West Ham since the 1953-54 seasonBrentford delivered a huge blow to West Ham's top-four hopes as the Bees moved further clear of the relegation places with victory in west London.
Second-half goals from Bryan Mbeumo and Ivan Toney saw Thomas Frank's side climb to 13th in the table, 12 points clear of the bottom three, to all but confirm their Premier League safety.
Mbeumo fired in from Toney's pass shortly after half-time, before turning provider for his team-mate as Toney headed in after 64 minutes.
The hosts had appeared the more likely to break the deadlock before half-time, but the heavily-involved Mbeumo headed at Lukasz Fabianski and also saw a powerful strike pushed away by the West Ham goalkeeper.
The visitors managed only one shot on target - a first-half Tomas Soucek header - in a subdued display, while Kurt Zouma was forced off early with an ankle problem ahead of Thursday's Europa League quarter-final second leg in Lyon.
West Ham remain sixth, six points adrift of fourth-placed Tottenham in the race for Champions League football, having also played a game more than Spurs.
- Reaction to Brentford v West Ham, plus the rest of Sunday's Premier League action
- 'A top performance against a very good side' - Thomas Frank's reaction
- 'I don't have any complaints' - David Moyes
Brentford continue fine end to first Premier League season
There was no shortage of motivation for West Ham, after defeats for fellow top-four hopefuls Arsenal and Manchester United on Saturday left the fight for the European positions wide open.
But, with the game falling between two huge meetings with Lyon, the Hammers struggled against a Brentford side full of confidence following their memorable 4-1 win over Chelsea last week.
Instead, it was the hosts who maintained their fine form at the end of their first Premier League season, deservedly securing a fourth win in five league games.
That upturn in results has coincided with the signing of Christian Eriksen, who once again produced a superb midfield display to offer the base for Brentford's superior attacking output.
The hosts had been by far the more fluent in the final third in the opening 45 minutes, recording nine shots to the Hammers' two, but Mbeumo in particular was unable to capitalise with any of his five attempts.
They made their chances count in the second half, though, as the 22-year-old Mbeumo seized his first opportunity after the restart, before his looping cross allowed Toney to put the game beyond West Ham.
David Moyes called on Said Benrahma and Nikola Vlasic from the bench in the hope of inspiring a fightback, with Benrahma seeing a deflected effort drop on to the roof of the net.
Brentford had further chances to extend their advantage too, Mbeumo notably shooting over at close range, but their misses did not prove costly as another excellent result was secured.
It is now all eyes on Lyon for West Ham, who must rest up and regroup quickly as they attempt to reach the club's first European semi-final since 1976.
Player of the match
EriksenChristian Eriksen
with an average of 8.63
Brentford
Squad number21Player nameEriksen
Squad number17Player nameToney
Squad number8Player nameJensen
Squad number7Player nameCanós
Squad number19Player nameMbeumo
Squad number30Player nameRoerslev
Squad number6Player nameNørgaard
Squad number3Player nameHenry
Squad number20Player nameAjer
Squad number11Player nameWissa
Squad number5Player namePinnock
Squad number22Player nameM Jorgensen
Squad number27Player nameJanelt
Squad number1Player nameRaya
West Ham United
Squad number20Player nameBowen
Squad number41Player nameRice
Squad number1Player nameFabianski
Squad number15Player nameDawson
Squad number28Player nameSoucek
Squad number8Player nameFornals
Squad number5Player nameCoufal
Squad number3Player nameCresswell
Squad number10Player nameLanzini
Squad number9Player nameAntonio
Squad number22Player nameBenrahma
Squad number23Player nameDiop
Squad number4Player nameZouma
Squad number11Player nameVlasic
Line-ups
Brentford
Formation 4-3-3
- 1Raya
- 20AjerSubstituted forRoerslevat 83'minutes
- 22M Jorgensen
- 5Pinnock
- 3Henry
- 27JaneltSubstituted forJensenat 69'minutes
- 6Nørgaard
- 21Eriksen
- 19MbeumoSubstituted forCanósat 78'minutes
- 17Toney
- 11Wissa
Substitutes
- 7Canós
- 8Jensen
- 14Ghoddos
- 23Jeanvier
- 24Fosu-Henry
- 26Baptiste
- 29Bech Sørensen
- 30Roerslev
- 40Fernández
West Ham
Formation 4-2-3-1
- 1Fabianski
- 5Coufal
- 15Dawson
- 4ZoumaSubstituted forDiopat 29'minutes
- 3Cresswell
- 28Soucek
- 41Rice
- 20Bowen
- 10LanziniSubstituted forBenrahmaat 57'minutes
- 8Fornals
- 9AntonioBooked at 66minsSubstituted forVlasicat 66'minutes
Substitutes
- 7Yarmolenko
- 11Vlasic
- 13Areola
- 22Benrahma
- 23Diop
- 24Fredericks
- 26Masuaku
- 31Johnson
- 33Král
Live Text
Match ends, Brentford 2, West Ham United 0.
Second Half ends, Brentford 2, West Ham United 0.
Corner, West Ham United. Conceded by Christian Eriksen.
Attempt blocked. Saïd Benrahma (West Ham United) right footed shot from outside the box is blocked.
Corner, West Ham United. Conceded by Christian Eriksen.
Attempt missed. Declan Rice (West Ham United) right footed shot from outside the box is high and wide to the right. Assisted by Aaron Cresswell.
Attempt saved. Sergi Canós (Brentford) right footed shot from outside the box is saved in the bottom left corner. Assisted by David Raya.
Nikola Vlasic (West Ham United) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
Foul by Mathias Jensen (Brentford).
Substitution, Brentford. Mads Roerslev replaces Kristoffer Ajer.
Corner, Brentford. Conceded by Vladimir Coufal.
Substitution, Brentford. Sergi Canós replaces Bryan Mbeumo.
Corner, Brentford. Conceded by Vladimir Coufal.
Attempt missed. Declan Rice (West Ham United) header from very close range misses to the right. Assisted by Pablo Fornals with a cross following a corner.
Corner, West Ham United. Conceded by Ethan Pinnock.
Foul by Vladimir Coufal (West Ham United).
Yoane Wissa (Brentford) wins a free kick on the left wing.
Substitution, Brentford. Mathias Jensen replaces Vitaly Janelt.
Attempt missed. Bryan Mbeumo (Brentford) left footed shot from very close range is too high. Assisted by Vitaly Janelt.
Attempt blocked. Ivan Toney (Brentford) left footed shot from the centre of the box is blocked. Assisted by Yoane Wissa with a headed pass.
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