Republic of Ireland International and Brentford defender Nathan Collins was caught on camera having a spat with club captain Ivan Toney following the Bees 3-3 draw with Aston Villa.
It was a topsy-turvy match at Villa Park as Brentford came from 2-0 down to 3-2 up only to be pegged back and leave Birmingham with a point.
The Villains had taken the lead early after only 3 minutes through talisman Ollie Watkins and it remained 1-0 heading into the break. Then January signing Morgan Rogers scored his first Premier League goal 32 seconds into the second half.
It looked to be doom and gloom for the Bees but in the space of two minutes Brentford were level. The first goal came from Danish International Zanka mis-kicked the ball but it ended up in the bottom corner before Bryan Mbuemo volleyed a Sergio Reguillon cross into the back of the net to bring Brentford level.
The free-scoring didn’t stop there as seven minutes after Mbuemo brought them level, Yoann Wissa tapped the ball in to give Brentford the improbable 3-2 lead. It really would’ve been a smash-and-grab performance from Brentford who looked to be all but defeated before a 10 minutes spell saw them come from 2-0 down to 3-2 up.
That wasn’t the end of it however, as it was that man again, Ollie Watkins who headed the ball in after goalkeeper Mark Flekken failed to deal with a Leon Bailey cross. The honours were even at full-time as Villa keep their Champions League hopes alive.
Brentford boss gives his thoughts on Nathan Collins spat
It was a very frustrating result for Brentford in the end as they had done so much to get back into the game then get the lead, only to squander it in the latter stages. Those frustrations seemed to have boiled over on the pitch when a clip emerged of Nathan Collins having an argument with Brentford captain Ivan Toney.
Toney is definitely a controversial character, having recently returned from an 8-month ban for gambling breaches. He’s not afraid to wear his heart on his sleeve but hopefully this was just frustration in the spur of the moment.
Following the incident, Brentford boss Thomas Frank was quick to brush it off, claiming all is good inside the camp.
I don’t know, I was over there speaking to them but I don’t know exactly what it was and I don’t really care.
I know it is two very competitive people that want to win a match. I don’t know exactly what it was the situation, but we have a very good culture and a united team and it is OK to have a little bit of friction. They will sort it out no problem
For the sake of Collins, we’ll be hoping Frank is right and all this can be put down to two competitors wanting to win.
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