Josh Dasilva's late, late show brought Nottingham Forest crashing back down to earth after their midweek win against Brighton.
That victory had given the East Midlanders a major boost in their battle to beat the drop. And when birthday boy Danilo fired them into the lead here in first-half stoppage-time with his second goal of the week, the 1,700-odd Forest fans who’d made the journey to west London were really starting to believe.
But then Ivan Toney, who’d been kept quiet all afternoon by Forest defenders Felipe and Moussa Niakhate, bent a 25-yard free-kick around the visitors’ wall and when Keylor Navas pushed it on to his left-hand post it rebounded back, struck the keeper again and bobbled back over the line.
It was a major blow for Steve Cooper and his men but worse was to follow when Josh Dasilva, in the fifth minute of seven added on at the end of the game, fired home the winner.
VAR Neil Swarbrick checked the goal with Yoane Wissa appearing to the naked eye to be in Navas’s line of sight and an offside position.
But, to the dismay of Forest boss Cooper, his players and their fans, Swarbrick’s message to referee Peter Bankes was that the goal should stand, leaving them just one point ahead of Leicester and two ahead of Everton having played a game more and with those two sides set to meet tomorrow.
Squeaky bum time down at the bottom? You bet.
And Cooper, asked what the officials had told him about their decision, said: “I haven’t seen anybody because there’s nothing we can change today. The only thing is I really hope the decision they made was based on real fact and not an assumption and a judgement call. If it’s onside we have to accept it but it’s something I’m waiting to see.
“We really need to know how they have made the call and the image they have made it from. I hope at this stage of the game and the season that they didn’t make a call based on an assumption. But the guys are fuming over it. The subs and the staff could see it fairly live and we thought it was going to be the opposite [decision].
“If it’s onside you accept it and it is what it is, but I’m still waiting to see that absolute, clearcut image and I’m waiting to see the one they have seen. It has to be an absolute matter of fact. To concede the goals we ended up conceding and some of the decisions around it was tough to take. It’s a tough one to take, that.”
Forest had been under the cosh for much of the first half before Danilo, on his 22nd birthday, put them ahead with his second goal of the week after the impressive Ben Mee had unluckily deflected Morgan Gibbs-White’s shot into his path.
And they were so close to holding on for the win until late in the game when Frank Onyeka was fouled by Cheikhou Kouyate, and Toney’s effort was helped in by Navas.
As disappointing as that was, four points from their last two games would have been acceptable for Forest given their plight and they’d have taken it had it been offered them before their clash with Brighton.
But then Dasilva punched them in the gut as he sealed the win for the home side.
Asked for his take on the VAR decision, Brentford boss Thomas Frank, laughing, said: “If the say ‘onside’ to me, fine, I don’t look too much more into.
“It was an average performance. We were not at our best and they made it difficult for us, they defended well and had a good structure. We played too slow, didn’t find the right moments to play behind and the killer pass, took too many touches.
“We became a little bit better in the second half but the willpower and determination in the team is remarkable. We showed we want to end the season as high as possible.”
