Bournemouth left to rue penalty decision after stalemate with Brentford

Bournemouth were left fuming at being denied a penalty during their 0-0 draw with Brentford.

The home side were left perplexed by rookie referee Thomas Bramall ruling out a spot-kick despite being ordered to the pitchside monitors by VAR official John Brooks. Bournemouth felt frustrated to see Kristoffer Ajer’s wayward sliding challenge on Jordan Zemura go unpunished.

Bramall took charge in the Premier League for just the second time, and his move to stick with his original onfield decision of no penalty was met with clear derision by the home fans. Bournemouth’s ire grew still further at the final whistle, as Bramall gave no second thought to the ball striking Mathias Jensen’s arm in the area. The last-gasp skirmish should not have yielded a penalty, but Bramall struggled to control the situation as players surrounded him.

These two teams proved too tame to topple the other on the south coast in the end, with killer instinct conspicuous by its absence. Interim Bournemouth manager Gary O’Neil will still have been delighted to extend his side’s unbeaten run to four Premier League matches. US investor Bill Foley’s proposed Bournemouth takeover remains in the works too, leaving plenty of optimism in the autumn air.

Brentford were at least able to steady proceedings following their 3-0 defeat by Arsenal, with the Bees well below their best but still grinding out a point. A first half devoid of quality, most notably from the officials, ended goalless. Bournemouth were left by far the more aggrieved party at the break, considering that rejected penalty.

Chris Mepham had almost gifted Brentford the dream start, passing straight to Mikkel Damsgaard in the final third. The former Sampdoria man latched onto the stray pass and