AFC Bournemouth
Bryan Mbeumo came off the bench to put on hold AFC Bournemouth’s hopes of securing a Championship play-off place.
Promotion rivals Brentford shook off the dismissal of captain Pontus Jansson as Frenchman Mbeumo bagged the only goal 13 minutes from time.
His close-range effort also dashed the Cherries’ bid to match a club record eight successive wins.
Jansson saw red for picking up a second yellow card for pulling down Arnaut Danjuma five minutes into the second half.
Adam Smith, Diego Rico, Jack Wilshere and Junior Stanislas were restored to the Cherries starting line-up as Jonathan Woodgate made four changes following Wednesday’s 4-1 win at Millwall.
Jack Stacey, Ben Pearson and David Brooks were named among the Cherries substitutes while Lloyd Kelly was ruled out after sustaining an injury at The Den.
The Cherries almost repeated their flying start against Coventry when Bees goalkeeper David Raya raced off his line to thwart Dominic Solanke inside the opening few seconds.
And a lively start continued when Steve Cook blocked Ivan Toney’s shot at the near post before Raya beat Solanke to an under-hit backpass from Tariqe Fosu.
Sergi Canos tried his luck from distance only to fire high and wide before Solanke put Stanislas in the clear, the winger slipping as he took aim and the ball sailing wide.
The Cherries were indebted to captain Cook for clearing off the line from Canos after the Spaniard had slid in to meet Marcus Forss’s header across goal in the 13th minute.
A crucial intervention from Mads Roerslev prevented Danjuma from testing Raya following a sweeping move involving Billing and Stanislas.
And as both teams kept up the momentum in the early stages, Asmir Begovic got down smartly to push a shot from Mathias Jensen around the post.
Bees skipper Pontus Jansson escaped punishment for clattering Solanke at a corner but quickly found his way into John Brooks’s notebook for a foul on Billing.
The Cherries were thankful to Begovic for denying Toney after the Championship’s leading goalscorer had been put clean through by Fosu’s pass in the 31st minute.
After bearing down on goal, Toney looked destined to open the scoring, only to poke his shot between Begovic’s legs, the goalkeeper then sitting on the ball to save the day.
Canos’s effort from the edge of the box deflected for a corner before the Bees midfielder showed his defensive attributes to challenge Solanke as he looked to latch on to Danjuma’s pass.
As an absorbing first half drew to a close, which saw both teams zip the ball around on a pristine Vitality Stadium pitch, Toney’s left-foot shot flashed past the upright.
Brentford were quickly out of the blocks at the start of the second half and Canos’s snapshot flew past the post.
Jansson received his marching orders five minutes after the restart, the Brentford captain collecting a second yellow card for hauling down Danjuma.
And from the resulting free kick from around 35 yards, the Dutchman’s effort was saved comfortably by Bees goalkeeper Raya.
A double substitution after 61 minutes saw Smith and Billing replaced by Stacey and Brooks before the visitors had a penalty appeal turned down after Toney had gone to ground under a Wilshere challenge.
Forss was booked for scything down Rico and Jefferson Lerma followed him into the book for appearing to throw the ball at the Brentford player.
Finnish striker Forss lifted a presentable opportunity over the crossbar after seizing on Cook’s headed backpass which had been intended for Begovic.
However, substitute Mbeumo made no mistake when he pounced on the loose ball to open the scoring 13 minutes from time.
The Frenchman was in the right place at the right time, prodding home the rebound from close range after Begovic had parried Toney’s shot.
Although the Cherries laid siege to the Brentford goal in the closing stages, they were unable to create any clear chances.
AFC Bournemouth: Begovic, Smith (Stacey, 61), S Cook, Carter-Vickers, Rico, Lerma (Pearson, 81), Wilshere (Surridge, 76), Solanke, Danjuma, Stanislas, Billing (Brooks, 61).
Unused subs: Mepham, Kilkenny, Anthony, Riquelme, Travers (g/k).
Booked: Lerma.
Brentford: Raya, Jansson, Norgaard, Pinnock, Roerslev (Ghoddos, 90), Janelt, Jensen (Marcondes, 72), Canos (Goode, 54), Fosu (Sorensen, 54), Forss (Mbeumo, 72), Toney.
Unused subs: Stevens, Gordon, Bidstrup, Daniels (g/k).
Booked: Jansson, Forss, Toney.
Sent off: Jansson.
Referee: John Brooks.
