This is why Caoimhin Kelleher missed out after Brentford team news vs Burnley
Caoimhin Kelleher was a surprise omission from the Brentford starting XI for their trip to Turf Moor against Burnley on Saturday.
The Bees travelled to face Scott Parker’s men, but were forced to do so without their number one due to personal reasons.
Keith Andrews revealed ahead of kick-off that the Irishman is absent from the squad to face Burnley after his partner gave birth.
He said: “Caoimhin’s partner had a baby. We are delighted for them, and we wish them well, but he couldn’t play today.”
That has handed Hakon Rafn Valdimarsson the opportunity to start for Brentford, with Ellery Balcombe acting as the substitute keeper option in Kelleher’s absence.
Caoimhin Kelleher misses first Premier League game for Brentford
There is no prior example of how the West Londoners perform without the Ireland international, as he hadn’t missed a Premier League game this season, until today.
The summer signing had played all 27 available league games since his move from Liverpool, keeping six clean sheets in the process.
That could have made things more difficult for Andrews and Co., as they are so used to having the 27-year-old in between the sticks.
It won’t help the Bees to know that Kelleher’s replacement is a 24-year-old who has only ever made three Premier League appearances.
Valdimarsson has only ever played 12 times in English football, so his lack of experience may have represented a concern pre-match, but it hasn’t shown.
Brentford coping well without Kelleher vs Burnley
Any worries surrounding the Icelandic goalkeeper have certainly been helped by Mikkel Damsgaard giving Brentford a 1-0 lead within nine minutes at Turf Moor.
The Bees go in at the break with a 3-1 advantage over the Clarets, with Igor Thiago bagging his 18th goal of the season after 25 minutes, before Kevin Schade tapped home.
That show of attacking quality has taken pressure off Valdimarsson, who has still managed to make one save and keep out 0.58 worth of Burnley’s expected goals.
It will certainly be interesting to see if he can keep a clean sheet and make it yet another big day for Andrews, even without Kelleher in net.