Sunderland's Enzo Le Fée Scores Equalizer Against Brentford
Enzo Le Fée buried his penalty, then turned to the away end and roared. Same stadium, same spot, completely different story.
Last season at the Gtech Community Stadium he tried a panenka and made a mess of it. This time, in the 82nd minute with Sunderland trailing, he went low, hard and ruthless from 12 yards to snatch a 1-1 draw off Brentford and wash away that lingering embarrassment.
Sunderland dominate, VAR bites
Regis Le Bris’ side arrived with scars from January, when they were brushed aside here. They did not play like a team with bad memories. From the first whistle, Sunderland were on the front foot, aggressive without the ball and direct with it.
They thought they had their reward after eight minutes. Dan Ballard swept a composed finish into the bottom corner and sprinted away in celebration, only for a long, fractious VAR check to suck the life out of the moment. Kevin Danso, making his debut, had strayed offside and was adjudged to have blocked Caoimhin Kelleher’s line of sight. Goal gone, momentum checked.
Brentford’s evening worsened when captain Nathan Collins limped off inside 20 minutes after a clash with Noah Sadiki. The home crowd fell quiet; Sunderland sensed weakness.
Le Fée almost punished them immediately, crashing a fierce effort off the post from 10 yards as red and white shirts poured forward. Thomas Meunier then lashed a first-time strike straight at substitute goalkeeper Jannik Schuster when he had time to pick his spot.
Brentford were rattled. They struggled to cope with Sunderland’s running in behind from Meunier and Nilson Angulo, and with the authority of Granit Xhaka patrolling midfield. By half-time, the hosts were level only through a mix of bodies on the line and plain good fortune.
Andrews rolls the dice
Keith Andrews knew he had to change it. Three substitutions at the break was a bold call, but it transformed the pattern of the game.
The second half flipped. Suddenly it was Sunderland penned in, blue shirts unable to find an out-ball as Brentford squeezed higher and higher. The pressure built, the noise rose, and just before the hour the breakthrough came.
Nordi Mukiele did the first part well, adjusting to head away a dangerous cross. No one in blue followed up. The loose ball dropped invitingly to Vitaly Janelt, striding onto it 15 yards out. He didn’t hesitate. One clean, rising half-volley, arrowed into the top corner, and Brentford finally had the lead their resurgence demanded.
Lewis-Potter then had the chance to kill it. Arriving at the back post, he miscued a volley into the ground and watched it loop over. Anthony did find the net soon after, only to be pulled up for taking the ball out of goalkeeper Robin Roefs’ hands before finishing. The Gtech groaned; Sunderland clung on.
At the other end, Kelleher had to be sharp, plunging down to his right to push away a Wilson Isidor free-kick as Le Bris chased a way back into the contest.
Redemption from the spot
Time ticked away. Brentford looked relatively secure. Sunderland, for all their effort, lacked a clear route back.
Then Isidor drove into the box.
Keane Lewis-Potter had his hands on the Sunderland substitute, there was contact, and down he went. The referee pointed to the spot. Brentford protested, the home crowd bristled. The decision felt generous, but it stood.
Le Fée stepped up again at the Gtech, the ghost of that failed panenka hanging over him. No tricks this time. Just conviction. He sent Kelleher the wrong way and slammed in the equaliser, a personal catharsis and a hard-earned point for a side that refused to fold.
Brentford had the win in their grasp and let it slip. Sunderland had the past in their heads and rewrote it from 12 yards.
