Liverpool left west London with a 2-1 victory over Brentford, but only after a demanding afternoon at the Gtech Community Stadium in which Andoni Iraola’s side overturned a first-half deficit and survived a late fightback from nine-man opponents.
The result reshaped the unbeaten picture in the Premier League. Manchester City are now the division’s only team without a defeat in 2026-27 after Everton, previously unbeaten as well, lost 2-0 to Chelsea. Brentford’s own unbeaten start ended despite a performance full of resistance.
Brentford’s early blow despite two red cards
Liverpool arrived after Wednesday’s 6-3 win over LASK in Linz, yet found their rhythm difficult to establish in the capital. Their afternoon was further complicated by an injury to Dominik Szoboszlai, making his return to the side but forced off before the interval.
Brentford took the lead in the 44th minute. Keane Lewis-Potter met a delivery from Outtara with an impressive header, giving Keith Andrews’ team an advantage their work had merited.
The hosts were then reduced to 10 players deep into stoppage time of the first half when Yehor Yarmolyuk was dismissed in the 45th minute plus eight. Liverpool had earlier been awarded a penalty for an alleged Outtara foul on Alexis Mac Allister, only for the referee to reverse that decision after a VAR review.
Bradley Barcola had Liverpool’s clearest opening before the break, breaking through on the counterattack only to fail to convert. The French forward had scored a hat-trick against LASK, but could not carry that sharpness into this contest and passed up further chances.
Muñoz and Isak turn the match
Ronald Araujo, the Barcelona loanee in Iraola’s squad, was replaced at half-time by Jeremie Frimpong. Frimpong himself then suffered an injury after the restart, adding to Liverpool’s concerns.
Numerical superiority did not immediately make the visitors comfortable. Brentford continued to look threatening and played with considerable spirit, until Víctor Muñoz changed the direction of the match. The former Osasuna player drove forward, cut inside and finished superbly to bring Liverpool level.
Alexander Isak had been largely quiet, but delivered the decisive moment in the 70th minute. Barcola headed the ball into his path and Isak converted to put Liverpool ahead.
Brentford did not retreat after falling behind and continued to press for an equaliser, even after Vitaly Janelt was sent off in the 92nd minute to leave the home side with nine men. Liverpool could not find a third goal to settle the occasion, but protected their lead to take all three points.
Table implications
The win lifts Liverpool provisionally to fifth, three points behind second-placed Arsenal, who are due to visit Nottingham Forest on Sunday. Brentford remain sixth, two points behind the Anfield club, after an afternoon that ended their unbeaten record but underlined their resolve.
