Some Brentford fans have been full of praise for Shandon Baptiste following the midfielder’s first full 90 minutes of Championship action for his new club.
Baptiste officially made his Brentford debut versus Leeds last week. However, the 21-year-old came on as a late substitute in that game, only seeing a minute of action before the final whistle blew. Though his appearance versus Leeds was officially his debut, Baptiste didn’t even have the opportunity to make a single pass in that game.
Bees fans got to see much more of Baptiste this past weekend as he enjoyed his first full game as a Brentford player in Saturday’s fixture versus Birmingham City. The newly signed midfielder impressed the Brentford faithful with what some fans have called a “very impressive” performance in his full Championship debut.
Baptiste made a total of four tackles versus the Blues, a higher total than any other Brentford player managed in Saturday’s game. Furthermore, the 21-year-old also successfully completed one of Brentford’s two successful dribbles in Saturday’s game. He also completed one key pass in Saturday’s game, according to Whoscored.com.
Were you impressed by Shandon Baptiste's first full Brentford appearance?
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Read the appreciative reactions of some Brentford fans to Baptiste’s “impressive” debut in the tweets below.
Shandon Baptiste (98) debut v #BCFC
69 touches
75% pass acc.
36/48 successful passes
9/13 final third passes
9 ball recoveries – *most on field
6/11 ground duels won
3 successful tackles
3 interceptions
1 chance created
90minsSolid start #BrentfordFC have done it again pic.twitter.com/7DOPGcmRAD
— Brentford FC Tactical (@BeesTactical) February 16, 2020
Great start to his Brentford career in a difficult game.
— Alex Madigan (@AlexMadigan72) February 16, 2020
https://twitter.com/ManicMonkey4/status/1229074067271098379
More great recruitment from Brentford some PL teams should of been after him (West Ham) but great game for him & expect we Will see a lot more from him & other Brentford players in the PL in near future!
#Talent— JRS? (@HammerOutHate) February 16, 2020
Baptiste looking impressive
— Beesotted Brentford (@Beesotted) February 15, 2020
A tough afternoon but Bees showing the squad has strength.
Impressed with Baptiste, Yearwood did well coming on and a promising short cameo from Fosu.
13 games to go, all to play for and lots more twists and turns yet.@BrentfordFC big players in this thrilling promotion race ? pic.twitter.com/J4hZGMf0aA— Mark Burridge (@MarkBurridge1) February 15, 2020
Yearwood really played well today and Baptiste, Ollie worked his socks off as did Henry, missed Bryan A LOT tho.
— SussexGreen (@SussexGreen70) February 15, 2020
What do we think?
It may be fair to suggest that Baptiste made a noticeable immediate impact to Brentford’s midfield in Saturday’s fixture. His impressive tackling stands out as his most impressive stat from Saturday’s game, as the 21-year-old completed more tackles than any other Brentford player last Saturday.
The former Oxford United player also achieved a Whoscored.com rating of 6.75 for his first full 90-minute performance. Only three Brentford players achieved a higher rating than the Grenada international this past weekend. At just 21 years old, Baptiste may have a bright future should he kick on from his praise-worthy display.