Brentford remain firmly in contention to secure a place in continental competition for the first time in their history, but Keith Andrews' side are stumbling towards the finishing line. The Bees will drop to ninth on Tuesday if Chelsea win their game in hand on their west London rivals - against struggling Tottenham Hotspur at Stamford Bridge. Having scored from their only attempt on target in the first half, Brentford looked on course for a limp defeat until a flurry of opportunities late in the match.
Brentford and Crystal Palace meet at the Gtech Community on Sunday afternoon (15:00 BST). The Bees are charging toward an unlikely Champions League finish, while Palace's focus is fixed firmly on a looming European final. Back in August, many pundits had Brentford tipped for relegation.
Brentford have defied expectations in their first season under Keith Andrews, but their home form - so impressive in the first half of the campaign - was starting to become a worry. The Bees rode their luck at times but, like West Ham, should have scored more, with Mikkel Damsgaard and Igor Thiago both missing clear chances. Sepp van den Berg flashed a header wide late in the first half, but El Hadji Malick Diouf's foul on Dango Ouattara - and Thiago's penalty - settled Brentford nerves.
