Dango Ouattara Salvages Point for Brentford Against Crystal Palace

Crystal Palace, with little to play for, nearly spoiled Brentford’s European ambitions before Dango Ouattara’s late equalizer salvaged a 2-2 draw at the Gtech Community Stadium. Adam Wharton scored his first Premier League goal to put Palace ahead, but Ouattara’s second goal of the match forced a frantic 10 minutes of stoppage time in which Brentford failed to find a winner.

The result leaves Brentford in eighth place, currently enough for a spot in next season’s Conference League, but final-day permutations and other results will determine their fate.

The match was played amid deep uncertainty, with Brentford needing to win at Liverpool next week to keep their European hopes alive. Sunderland, one point behind in ninth, face Chelsea, while Brentford’s London rivals have an extra game in hand.

“We emptied ourselves, played with personality and I just have immense pride,” said Brentford manager Keith Andrews. “The character is there in abundance and it will be there next weekend.”

Andrews has done an exemplary job replacing Thomas Frank, but the pattern of last season, when chances to secure European football were squandered, may be repeated. This was a season Brentford were expected to struggle under a rookie manager, but a single win since February suggests a team low on energy.

In sunny, breezy conditions, Palace were dangerous from the start. In the second minute, the video assistant referee awarded a penalty when Caoimhín Kelleher slid into Ismaïla Sarr on the goal line. Sarr’s minimal run-up and finish beyond Kelleher’s reach set Brentford into recovery mode bordering on panic. “Unfortunately we didn’t quite hit our levels today, especially in that first half,” said Andrews.

With an eye on the Europa League final, Palace manager Oliver Glasner made five changes, but the selections of Wharton and Sarr kept his team competitive. Players hoping to earn a starting place in a European final can be dangerous, as Brentford discovered.

Glasner’s team did not repeat their first-half no-show at Bournemouth and could have scored more by halftime. With fans in party mode, looking ahead to German beer, they celebrated their departing manager with songs. “Huge appreciation for my players,” said Glasner. “A really great attitude.”

Brentford’s route back into the game relied on set pieces, but Jørgen Strand Larsen hitting the post further heightened home anxiety.

Fortune provided a lifeline when Ouattara’s head delivered the equalizer, but only after Jaydee Canvot deflected a Yehor Yarmoliuk cross off the Burkina Faso forward’s face.

That laid the foundation for a second-half reset, but Brentford continued to struggle. Wharton’s goal came after Daniel Muñoz recycled the ball following multiple failed clearances by Brentford defenders. Wharton’s low left-foot shot found Kelleher at fault. “It has been a long time coming,” said Wharton. “It’s probably the worst shot I’ve had but it goes in and I’ll take it.”

“It was a question of time, he has come closer and closer,” said Glasner of Wharton. Jordan Henderson’s introduction past the hour failed to wrest control of midfield as Wharton continued to dominate. “It’s incredible how he reads the game,” Glasner added.

Keane Lewis-Potter’s shot wide was a rare Brentford attempt as what was supposed to be a gala occasion lurched toward anticlimax. It signaled a shift in momentum. “We dropped a little bit,” said Glasner.

Ouattara’s second equalizer came via a trusted route: Michael Kayode’s throw was flicked on by substitute Sepp van den Berg, and Ouattara nodded in.

Could the winner come? Kevin Schade fired wildly wide, a VAR handball call came and went, and Igor Thiago saw his shot deflected wide amid a frantic flurry. No goal arrived, leaving Brentford to wonder if permutations beyond their control and a result at Anfield can rescue their European ambitions.