Brentford eased to a 3-0 win over Tottenham Hotspur in the Premier League on Saturday evening, but in truth it could have been even worse for Roberto De Zerbi’s side.
Tottenham started their first full Premier League campaign under Roberto De Zerbi in nightmare fashion as they were thrashed 3-0 by Brentford on Saturday.
Spurs were all at sea right from the first whistle at the Gtech Community Stadium, with Keane Lewis-Potter and Vitaly Janelt giving Brentford a deserved two-goal lead within 33 minutes.
The second of those goals came from some suspect goalkeeping from Antonin Kinsky, who was also guilty of parrying Mamadou Sangaré‘s volley to Michael Kayode for Brentford’s third early in the second half.
Spurs, who only introduced new £85m midfielder Mateus Fernandes from the bench at half-time, could have lost by an even bigger scoreline, too, if not for Igor Thiago hitting the post from the penalty spot.
Spurs were under pressure from the first whistle, as Nathan Collins headed wide when totally unmarked and Jan Paul van Hecke narrowly avoided turning Lewis-Potter’s cross into his own net.
And Lewis-Potter put Brentford in front with a simple side-footed finish in the 12th minute, after new signing Sangaré played a one-two with Thiago and burst into the penalty area to provide the assist.
It was 2-0 just after the half-hour mark, with Richarlison putting Spurs in trouble when he lost the ball cheaply near halfway. Mathias Jensen’s long-range effort was only parried by Kinsky, and a grateful Janelt tapped into an unguarded net.
It was a similar story for Brentford’s third goal, which arrived via Kayode in the 49th minute after Kinsky’s failure to hold onto a stinging volley from the impressive Sangaré.
Thiago missed a great chance to get in on the goals soon afterwards, hitting the post from a penalty after Spurs substitute Rodrigo Bentancur fouled Kevin Schade from behind.
That miss ultimately proved inconsequential, though, with Mikey Moore missing Spurs’ only two chances to get a consolation goal on a miserable day for De Zerbi’s men.
Brentford Buzzing After Outstanding Start
Having watched Manchester United make a dire start to their first full season under Michael Carrick earlier on Saturday, going down 2-0 to newly promoted Hull City, De Zerbi’s Spurs made a similarly poor first impression in 2026-27.
There were 15 passes in the build-up to Lewis-Potter’s opening goal, with the contribution made by club-record signing Sangaré being particularly eye-catching.
That is the third most passes in the build-up to any Premier League goal scored by Brentford under Keith Andrews, after Kayode’s effort versus Wolves in March (19) and Rico Henry’s goal against Bournemouth last December (18).
It was precisely the brand of football that Tottenham’s fans expect to see in their first full season under De Zerbi, particularly after they rebuilt their midfield with the big-money acquisitions of Sandro Tonali and Fernandes.
Instead, the visitors struggled to build any momentum as Brentford’s physicality saw them dominate the midfield area. With the Bees’ third goal coming in the 49th minute, they have only led 3-0 at an earlier stage of a home Premier League game once – against Manchester United in August 2022.
Seven different Brentford players had a shot on target throughout the match, while just two Spurs players tested Caoimhin Kelleher in the Brentford net.
De Zerbi’s side host Charlton Athletic in the EFL Cup on Wednesday, before taking on Newcastle United in their second Premier League game, and the Italian will know a huge improvement is required.
Our Opta match centre delivers you all the Brentford vs Tottenham Hotspur stats from their Premier League meeting at the Gtech Community Stadium on Saturday 22 August 2026.
The match centre below includes team and player stats, expected goals data, passing networks, an Opta chalkboard and more. It gives you everything you need to do your own match analysis.
Underneath the match centre you can find the official Opta stats on the game as well.
Brentford 3-0 Tottenham: Post-Match Opta Facts
Tottenham Hotspur suffered their joint-heaviest defeat on MD1 of a Premier League season, having also lost 3-0 to Manchester United in 2011-12.
Brentford have won three of their six opening day games in the Premier League (D2 L1), with all three wins coming at home, while it’s their biggest in the league since 2018-19 in the Championship (5-1 v Rotherham United) and biggest ever in the top-flight.
Brentford’s xG of 3.96 is their most in a Premier League game since January 2025 against Southampton (4.46), while it’s the most Tottenham Hotspur have shipped in the competition since December 2024 against Liverpool (5.63).
Michael Kayode’s goal in the 49th minute is the second-earliest that Brentford have been three goals ahead in a home Premier League game after Manchester United in August 2022 (30th minute).
There was 15 passes in the build-up to Keane Lewis-Potter’s opening goal for Brentford, only Michael Kayode’s goal v Wolves in March (19) and Rico Henry’s goal v Bournemouth in December (18) have seen more passes in a Premier League goal for the Bees under Keith Andrews.
Mamadou Sangaré is the fifth player to either score or assist on their Premier League debut for Brentford and just the second since the start of 2022-23 after Dango Ouattara vs Aston Villa last term.
Vitaly Janelt is the only player to have scored in each of Brentford’s six Premier League seasons since their promotion in 2021.
Archie Gray (20y 163d) became the youngest player to start a Premier League match for Tottenham Hotspur as captain, overtaking Harry Kane v Burnley in April 2015 (21y 251d).
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