A three-goal second half saw Brentford B beat Strasbourg Under-21s 3-2 in their first game in front of fans on a wet night at Wheatsheaf Park.
On an historic night for the young Bees, Brentford fought back from 2-0 down at half-time to claim a the win thanks to goals from Val Adedokun, Charlie Farr and Zanka.
The young Bees controlled play through the opening 10 minutes, their pressure up the pitch forcing Strasbourg to make turnovers deep in their defensive half.
Turnovers turned into corners for Brentford, multiple crosses bobbling around inside the box before being cleared, the crowd heaping their praise on the young Bees’ efforts.
Despite Brentford dominating possession for much of the early stages of the game, the visitors had one look on target on 13 minutes through Jeremy Sebas and the winger made the most of it, his strike finding the bottom left corner to hand them a 1-0 lead.
Brentford were quickly on the attack again and assumed possession dominance, Nathan Young-Coombes firing a shot on goal following a corner that was deflected away by the Strasbourg defence.
The ensuing Brentford corner was cleared and found its way to midfield, a loose play by the young Bees on the halfway line allowing Sebas to pounce on a free ball and be one-on-one with Vincent Angelini, who put the ball past the Brentford keeper to hand the visitors a 2-0 lead on 19 minutes.
Despite the deficit Brentford continued to create opportunities, Romeo Beckham crossing a dangerous ball from the right side to Young-Coombes two minutes later, the latter’s outstretched right foot just missing the ball in front of goal.
On the brink of half-time Shandon Baptise had Brentford’s best chance on target, receiving the ball from a brilliant Farr cross before firing a shot into the left post.
Having peppered the goal throughout the first half, Brentford carried the momentum into the second 45 minutes.
Young-Coombes fired off multiple shots inside the box in the opening five minutes, but both were well defended by Strasbourg’s defensive unit.
The visitors almost countered to make it 3-0 on 52 minutes as Aboubacar Ali found himself one-on-one with Angelini, however the young Bees keeper made a timely save to keep Brentford in the game.
Angelini’s side rewarded his efforts with continual pressure on Strasbourg up the pitch, multiple crosses resulting in near chances on target for the young Bees.
Adedokun broke the stranglehold for Brentford on 59 minutes, reaping the rewards of Conor McManus’s run through multiple defenders and Tony Yogane’s cross into the box to find the back of the net with a powerful left foot strike.
Yogane was involved in a promising attacking move again soon after, his cross to Young-Coombes seeing the latter be taken down inside the box and awarded a penalty. Farr stepped up and scored the equaliser on 69 minutes.
Farr enjoyed a stellar night on the right side with Beckham, the pair’s crosses proving dangerous throughout the contest.
Beckham continued to provide a spark, winning the ball back deep in Strasbourg’s defence on 79 minutes and crossing the ball into Zanka, whose flick from close range found the back of the net to give Brentford the lead.
Strasbourg continued to press for an equaliser as the game entered the final 10 minutes, however the young Bees’ defensive unit was strong in its efforts to deny any shots on target.
Ethan Laidlaw came within inches of finding a fourth goal for Brentford in added time, winning the ball back from his defender and fighting through to fire a shot off, which went across the face of goal.
A strong crowd of 877 came through the gates to witness the 3-2 comeback win.
Brentford B: Angelini, Farr, Adedokun, Goode (Fredrick, 60’), Beckham, Brierley, Young-Coombes (Laidlaw, 73’), Yogane (Dickov, 85’), Zanka 13, Peart-Harris (Owen, 45’), Baptiste (McManus, 45’)
Subs not used: Waruih, Zabeli, Hay, Rose
Strasbourg U21: Hasbi (Tutu, 76’), Biten (Casadei, 70’), Araar, Kiwa, Baseya, Mourabet (Dumay, 70’), Sebas, Lyakoubi (Kanoute, 70’), Bechikh (Kaiki, 70’), Outtara, Ali
MacFarlane delighted with character in group
B team head coach Neil MacFarlane was impressed with the display from his side as they came from behind to claim the win.
Farr feels group improving all the time
B team defender Charlie Farr says the side are building their chemistry all the time and showed that with the way they came back into the game. The youngster also reflected on finishing from the spot to bring the match level.