Bees beat Stoke in pre-season friendly

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Goals from Andy Gogia and Stuart Dallas fired Brentford to a thoroughly deserved 2-0 friendly win over Stoke at Griffin Park.

Gogia capped an impressive first-half cameo by firing home a 30-yard shot just after the half-hour mark which took a big deflection off Stoke skipper Ryan Shawcross.

The Bees had earned their good fortune having carved out several clear chances to score, with Andre Gray and Gogia forcing Jack Butland into saves and Jota curling just over.

Stoke, who were comfortable in possession but looked toothless going forward, threatened for the first time late in the half when Bees keeper David Button pushed Peter Odemwingie’s free-kick over the bar.

The visitors were boosted at the break by the long-awaited return to fitness of former Barcelona man Bojan, who missed the second half of last season with an anterior cruciate ligament injury.

And Mark Hughes’s side, who included Chelsea loanee Marco van Ginkel, did begin the second half strongly, Jonathan Walters guiding a lob just wide of the near post.

After a glut of substitutions, Brentford grabbed the second their superiority deserved. After Alan Judge had an angled drive pushed wide by the leaping Butland, a corner found its way to an unmarked Dallas who emphatically thumped a shot beyond the Potters keeper.

Lasse Vibe, who signed on the eve of the game from IFK Gothenburg, went close to adding a third in the closing stages but rolled a shot just wide of the far post.

Brentford: Button; Odubajo (Yennaris 67), Dean (O’Connell 71), Bjelland (Barbet 38), Bidwell (McCormack 71); Diagouraga (Tebar 71), Kerschbaumer; Jota (Dallas 63), Judge (Williams 77), Gogia (Vibe 46); Gray (Hofmann 63).
Sub not used: Bonham.

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