We smash Bournemouth 4-1 at home, but a few squeaky bum moments in the second half

Favourites to win this but I am always the pessimist. We won the game comfortably but in the second half when they pulled a goal back they were threatening to get one or two more, until we got our fourth and Schade's hat-trick. Just before that KLP missed an open goal with a header but was flagged offside so it wouldn't have counted, except had it gone in then VAR would have shown that he was onside. After all the Xmas festivities I am too tired to write my report, so I would like to acknowledge the Brentford FC website for the following match report that I have plagiarised, sorry borrowed:

"Kevin Schade scored a hat-trick as Brentford ended 2025 with a 4-1 win against Bournemouth in the Premier League. The German netted either side of a Djordje Petrović own goal to put the Bees three goals ahead at Gtech Community Stadium. Antoine Semenyo replied for the Cherries before Schade headed in his third in stoppage-time. In the only change to the side that beat Wolves 2-0 at Molineux seven days earlier, Kristoffer Ajer replaced Sepp van den Berg, who missed out after picking up a knock.

Semenyo had the first half-chance inside the opening two minutes. Alex Scott dispossessed Yehor Yarmoliuk with a perfectly-timed tackle, with the Cherries countering down the left wing before Caoimhín Kelleher fell on a tame effort from the corner of the box. Five minutes later, it was 1-0 to the Bees. Igor Thiago expertly brought down a pass on his chest midway inside his own half before playing a one-two with Vitaly Janelt and releasing Schade in front of him, and the Germany international did the rest. Having latched onto the ball, he shrugged off Bafodé Diakité, before coolly slotting past the onrushing Petrović with his left foot. Brentford could have doubled the lead with just over 10 minutes played, too. Michael Kayode picked up a loose ball in his own area before sending the ball over the top of Diakité for Thiago to chase. The Brazilian had Mathias Jensen in support but opted to go for goal and saw his effort saved. Keith Andrews' side looked threatening every time they had the ball. Moments later, after Kayode had been brought down by Semenyo on the right flank, Janelt's inswinging free-kick was flicked narrowly wide of the far post by Ajer. The chances kept coming. Yarmoliuk played the ball forward to Jensen, who pulled the ball back to the edge of the six-yard box. Bournemouth could only clear as far as Schade, who saw one shot blocked before his second attempt was claimed by Petrović. Six minutes before the interval, the west Londoners finally got the second goal that their dominance deserved. Yarmoliuk played the ball up the line for Thiago, who drove into the right corner of the box before seeing his low shot loop up and over the keeper. Diakité's goal-line clearance, under pressure from Schade, ricocheted off Petrović and into the back of the net.

Bournemouth made three changes at the interval, but just over five minutes after the restart, the hosts added a third goal, with Schade starting and ending a blistering counterattack. The German took possession on the edge of the D and drove 80 yards before Álex Jiménez poked the ball away from him. It fell to Thiago, who played it wide to Yarmoliuk, and he side footed into the area for Schade to emphatically finish, first time, into the roof of the net. The Cherries' best period of the game followed and they came close to pulling a goal back twice inside the space of 30 seconds. First, Kelleher pulled off a brilliant reaction save to tip Evanilson's shot from six yards around the post and, after the resulting corner had been played short, David Brooks' back-post delivery hit Justin Kluivert and cannoned against the post. Bournemouth got on the scoresheet with 15 minutes remaining. Jiménez managed to get in behind Rico Henry and saw a drive from a tight angle blocked by Nathan Collins, but it fell to Semenyo, who bundled in from a yard out. That sparked the game into life. Less than a minute later, Kayode was in the right place to clear Kluivert's goalbound effort from a narrowing angle after a low cross had been allowed to go right the way through the box. The Bees countered and, after Thiago had done well to hold the ball up and switch the play to put Schade in on goal, he won the 50/50 with Petrović but was denied by the recovering Scott. Janelt was inches away from putting the game to bed late in the 90, but his piledriver from 25 yards was palmed onto the inside of the post and Lewis-Potter nodded the rebound wide from close range, although the assistant referee's flag was already up for offside. Moments after Reiss Nelson - making his first appearance in a month - had curled just wide, the Bees did get their fourth. Jordan Henderson played it inside from the right wing to Mikkel Damsgaard, who crossed for Schade to head in from close range and complete a perfect hat-trick."