Thiago injury update + Dango pen winner

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Igor Thiago‘S (£6.6m) phenomenal season continued on Saturday when he hit 11 league goals for the campaign.

However, his 13-point haul was somewhat dampened by a late injury scare for the Brazilian striker.

Here are our Scout Notes from Brentford 3-1 Burnley.

THIAGO’S INJURY DISAPPOINTMENT

Another penalty saw Thiago score in double figures for the campaign.

It was his fifth penalty kick in the 2025/26 season, more than any other player has recorded:

However, remove all the penalties, and he still scored a decent six goals for the season. Only Erling Haaland (£14.9 million) and Danny Welbeck (£6.6m), with 14 and seven respectively, could do better than that.

Against Burnley, Thiago was once again more than just a penalty kick trader. His shot narrowly missed the target in the first half (he insists it was deflected), he missed a header in the 54th minute, had a goal disallowed for offside, then added to his penalty in the 81st minute with a predatory second shortly afterwards.

But another bright afternoon for the striker ended a little early in the 91st minute. After a bit of treatment for what appears to be a muscle injury, he promptly disappears through a conversation with Keith Andrews.

And this is what the Brentford boss said after the match to internal media…

“Not really, I just talked to him afterwards and he said it was a precaution. So, I’ll bring it up when I get back in.” – Keith Andrews, when asked if he had an update on Igor Thiago’s injury

No further questions were asked by the BBC, by Sky, or in the post-match presser, while we were unable to verify the alleged sighting of the striker on crutches like this.

We’ll hear from Andrews again before Tuesday’s Gameweek 14 deadline, so hopefully we’ll have an update on the striker. Considering the next game is away to Arsenal, this might not be a bad game to miss.

DANGO-LANG’S FEET

Thiago was assisted during this time Dango Ouattara (£6.0 million).

We wrote last week that the winger has won more penalties (three) than any other player in the division this season.

Well, now we can make it four goals – he was brought down for Thiago’s spot-kick on Saturday.

Not satisfied with the assist, he scored a goal in stoppage time to ensure Brentford’s victory. He previously nodded a Michael Kayode (£4.5m) his cross went inches wide and right now, no FPL midfielder can beat him for a big chance this season (remember he didn’t take any penalties, which are also classed as big chances):

Dango will probably miss the Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) as soon as Gameweek 16, so Thiago and the others should enjoy it while they can.

Free Hitter chooses Kevin Damage (£7.0 million) were left cursing their luck. A better bet than Dango for game time on paper (the German has completed 90 minutes in eight of his last nine games), he had few errors, failed to register a shot, and was hooked in the 75th minute. That is the earliest withdrawal will be in 2025/26…

MORE DEFCON FOR COLLIN – BUT HAUL MANAGES HIM

Nathan Collins (£4.9m) bagged defensive contribution points (DefCon) for the seventh time in the 2025/26 season on Saturday.

Collins’ total of 22 clearances, blocks, interceptions and tackles (CBIT) against Burnley was actually the highest any defender has made in a single game this season (thanks to TopMarx for that stat!):

Burnley’s Maxime Esteve (£3.9m) now also has 14 DefCon points for the campaign. Collins’ fellow centre-back Sepp van den Berg (£4.5 million) airs on 12.

But Collins left some points on the table, with two close chances possible:

After nine comebacks in 2024/25, Collins is yet to score a goal/assist this season.

FLEMMING ON THE PENS

A familiar story for Burnley: admirable stubbornness, lack of goal threat and late surrender. The Clarets have frustrated opponents (Liverpool, Chelsea, both Manchester clubs etc) for a long time this season but have always been weak, and Saturday was another addition to an already familiar list.

Scott Parker’s troops have not fired a shot in the penalty box to date Zian Fleming‘s (£5.3 million) Penalty in the 84th minute, a penalty kick that occurred suddenly thanks to Kayode’s momentary mistake.

Flemming, who previously came close to scoring from distance, has now scored four goals in his last five games as a starter. It was something done in an outspoken team like this.

Hannibal Mejbri (£4.9m) should have shot earlier rather than dived, but that was enough from an attacking point of view.

Prepare Palace defenders for Gameweek 14…

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