For those who had watched Mbeumo’s development, such a headline-grabbing performance was of little surprise. He’d already earned his senior debut with Troyes, in a 1-0 Ligue 1 victory over Metz, and made a further three appearances that season, making it a successful personal campaign despite the club’s relegation to Ligue 2.
That demotion provided plenty of opportunity for Mbeumo to thrive in the following campaign, however. His 11 goals in 40 games helped Troyes to push for immediate promotion, although it ended in heartbreak with defeat to Lens in the play-off semi-final.
Such team-leading performances while still in his teens made it clear that Mbeumo was destined for a great career, with several Ligue 1 sides linked with a transfer. The next step followed shortly after when Brentford paid £5.4m for his signing in August 2019.
“Bryan is exactly the sort of player we want at Brentford,” then-head coach Thomas Frank said.
“He is quick, he is direct, he can beat people attacking one-on-one, he can arrive late in the penalty area and he can score goals.”
