Brentford cruise to another derby win as West Ham are brushed aside with ease

Brentford (0) 2 Mbeumo 48, Toney 64

West Ham United (0) 0

Bryan Mbeumo and Ivan Toney grabbed a goal apiece in the second half as the Bees completed a fine double over the Hammers.

The French striker had been frustrated several times during a one-sided first half when he managed to get into many good striking positions - only to be denied by a combination of wayward finishing or good blocking.

But this time, he raced through to a ball played in from Toney following a throw-in on the right and got ahead of Craig Dawson to lash a low shot past Lukasz Fabianski.

The lead was doubled with fine team goal. Yoane Wissa found Rico Henry on the overlap and the defender’s cross to the far post was volleyed back across the six-yard line for Toney to nod home from close range for his 12th league goal of the campaign.

It brought up a fourth win in five games for Thomas Frank’s side, who move up to 13th in the Premier League table, 12 points above the drop zone.

With the home side really bubbling, they might have inflicted more pain on the Hammers. Eriksen’s angled shot had Fabianski in difficulties under his crossbar. Mbeumo volleyed over from close range.

West Ham never looked like making a game of it once they were behind and they slip further away from contention in the race for a top-four finish. But perhaps it was to be expected, given that this game falls between two Europa League quarter-final ties against Lyon.

The Irons also played 45 minutes with 10 men in Thursday’s first leg and were lacking spark. Moyes withdrew Antonio midway through the second half, presumably to keep the striker out of danger ahead of this week’s trip to France for the return leg.

The ease with which the Bees found the net after the interval made a mockery of their toils to break the deadlock.

Mbeumo twice got himself into decent goalscoring positions to test Fabianski – once from a header and then with a powerful strike which asked a bit more from the Hammers keeper.

Toney was the provider for that chance and he later slipped an almost identical ball through the inside-left channel for the Frenchman, with Fabianski rushing out to smother.

Christian Eriksen fired low and straight at the keeper, then Vitaly Janelt and Toney combined to give Mbeumo another opening – which was this time skied well wide and over the bar.

Then, the busy Frenchman had an effort charged down by a defender after being picked out beautifully on the right edge of the penalty by the trusty accuracy of Eriksen, out on the left.

There was another close-shave for the Hammers just before the break too, when Vladimir Coufal headed Eriksen’s wicked, teasing free-kick onto the roof of his own net.

The Irons’ only response came when Tomas Soucek got on the end of a Coufal cross to head at David Raya and the away side were forced into an early change when Kurt Zouma hobbled off not long after being fouled by Cristian Norgaard.

“That’s how your cat feels,” was the less-than-sympathetic reaction of the home fans, mindful of that infamous video the defender shot of an assault on his own supposedly feline-friend.

David Moyes brought on former Bees favourite Said Benrahma, but it did not change the script. This was a great time for the Bees to play the Hammers. It seems to be a great time for them, full stop.

“Are you Chelsea in disguise,” the home fans crowed at the death.

Bees: (4-5-1) Raya – Ajer (Roerslev 82), Zanka, Pinnock, Henry – Mbeumo (Canos 78), Eriksen, Norgaard, Janelt (Jensen 68), Wissa – Toney. Subs not used: Fernandez, Ghoddos, Jeanvier, Fosu-Henry, Baptiste, Sorensen

Hammers: (4-2-3-1) Fabianski – Coufal, Dawson, Zouma (Diop 29), Cresswell – Soucek, Rice – Bowen, Lanzini (Benrahma 58) Fornals – Antonio (Vasic 66). Subs not used: Areola, Yarmolenko, Fredericks, Masuaku, Johnson, Kral