Analysis: The numbers behind Ouattara's goalscoring Brentford debut | OneFootball

As utility man Keane Lewis-Potter remarked afterwards, Brentford's first win of the 2025/26 season may not have been pretty, but it was certainly effective.

A 1-0 success over Aston Villa at Gtech Community Stadium chalked up Keith Andrews' maiden Premier League victory as head coach, and summer signing Dango Ouattara immediately endeared himself to the home faithful by netting the winner 12 minutes into a very impressive debut.

A gritty and resilient performance against Unai Emery's Villans helped the west Londoners banish memories of an opening-day defeat to Nottingham Forest and Ouattara made a real impact - his pace, energy and commitment suggesting the Bees have pulled off another shrewd piece of transfer business.

The Burkina Faso forward got his Brentford career off to a flyer with the only goal of the game, the 23-year-old racing onto Igor Thiago’s flick and slotting home at the second attempt after his first shot deflected back to him off Villa keeper Emiliano Martínez.

Ouattara's physicality and the timing of his run exemplified his ability to stretch opposition defences, but the composure he showed to wait a beat and switch feet prior to firing home also caught the eye.

Head coach Andrews afterwards hailed his side's "selfless" performance and reserved special mention for Saturday's goalscorer, who embodied the spirit and work ethic that underpinned Brentford's first home win of the season.

The former Bournemouth man's numbers certainly reflect the all-action nature of his first outing for the club. His all-important goal will naturally grab the headlines, but he also clocked up a host of other impressive stats.

No Brentford player won more aerials than Ouattara (3) during the contest, suggesting he will improve the Bees in an area that is already one of their strengths, and his four tackles and six clearances illustrated tenacity and pressing power out of possession.

Ouattara was the star of the show, but it was the side's collective display that most pleased their head coach - and it was hard to argue with Andrews' post-match assertion that his side had "defended phenomenally well."

Right-back Michael Kayode made a number of vital interventions and the Italy Under-21 international blocked more shots (3) than any player on the pitch at the Gtech, while no player from either side won more tackles than the former Fiorentina defender (5).

Likewise, Brentford's central defensive duo of Nathan Collins and Sepp van den Berg made an incredible 21 clearances between them during an encounter that saw Villa dominate 76.1 per cent of the possession, but create little by way of clear chances.

Although Brentford enjoyed a record-breaking 2024/25 campaign in front of goal, the Bees recorded only one home clean sheet all season across all competitions (against Chelsea in early April), and kicking off the new season with a shutout will have delighted their new number one Caoimhín Kelleher, who reacted particularly well to make a smart save from John McGinn prior to the interval.

A promising afternoon saw Mikkel Damsgaard and Kevin Schade make their first starts of the new campaign, and Jordan Henderson mark his full debut, and the way in which Brazilian striker Thiago led the line was another huge plus for the Bees.

After bouncing back from adversity with aplomb versus Villa, Brentford head to Vitality Stadium on Tuesday aiming to build further momentum in the Carabao Cup against Andoni Iraola’s Bournemouth.