Fulham 0-3 Brentford: Bees pick up their first win of the season after a goal from Yoane Wissa and two from Bryan Mbeumo

If this was a glimpse of post-Aleksandar Mitrovic life for Marco Silva, then it’s fair to say he’ll be shocked by what he saw.

The Fulham manager started their second game of the season high after an opening day win and still hoped he could call on his star man for the rest of the season. By the end of the afternoon there was no doubt about it – Mitrovic was out – and Silva’s side were on the wrong side of a West London derby demolition.

The irony was that the thrashing had been delivered by a side also stripped of their talisman striker, with Brentford’s Ivan Toney suspended until January. But the Bees had ready replacements in Yoane Wissa and Bryan Mbeumo to pick up the slack in his absence. Fulham looked lost without their shining light.

Their summer of uncertainty shows no sign of abating. Silva turned down his own move to Saudi Arabia last month, but he has the air of a man who regrets that decision more and more every day. He cut a gloomy figure as he criticized Mitrovic for the circumstances surrounding his impending £45 million move to Al Hilal – and suggested more exits may be on the way.

“Mitrovic forced everything to leave the club,” he said. “Both clubs have an agreement, now is the time for him to leave.

The Cameroon international has now scored three goals in The Bees’ first two Premier League games

Yoanne Wissa also got on the scoresheet for the second straight week in victory

‘He forced it. It’s clear what he did. I’m not saying if I’m disappointed in him or not, he knows my opinion, I told him privately. It wasn’t just Mitrovic in our football club for the past three, four weeks.

‘Is it normal? No. Should footballers behave like this? No, is the easy answer. In many ways it was not as it should be.’

Without Mitrovic, Fulham looked toothless as they fell to an emphatic defeat secured by Wissa’s opener and Mbeumo’s second-half penalty. Tim Ream was sent off – it has to be said – for fouling Wissa for the penalty, and Mbeumo penalized the 10 men to make it 3-0 in stoppage time. The home fans’ chant of ‘F*** the Saudis’ was the only Fulham rebellion to be seen at Craven Cottage.

That’s eleven London derbies in a row without defeat for Brentford, whose stand-ins for Toney, Mbeumo and Wissa have scored all five goals in their first two games. By contrast, Raul Jimenez – the man who will be tasked, at least in the short term, with filling Fulham’s gap at the top – is now goalless in 25 league games.

After a quiet start to the first half, Brentford almost took the lead in the 38th minute. Wissa’s shot looked like it was on target or a tap for Christian Norgaard, until Antonee Robinson cleared the line brilliantly.

But the Bees and Wissa didn’t have to wait long for an opener – and when it came, it was an absolute gift. Issa Diop was under little pressure when he misfired a routine pass at the back. Wissa jumped up, danced around Bernd Leno and shot into an empty net.

Fulham came out strong after the break. Bobby Decordova-Reid was inches away from equalizing when his curled shot from the edge of the box hit the crossbar. But while their more ambitious approach paid off, it came with risks and Brentford soon came close to adding a second on the counter, Leno having to knock over an effort from Jensen.

Wissa was back in a few minutes later and fell under the challenge of Ream, who threw an arm over the attacker. It was soft, but also clumsy, and referee Darren Bond pointed to the spot. An incredulous Ream received his marching orders for a second yellow card and the match was almost over when Mbeumo sent the penalty kick into the bottom left corner, leaving Leno with no chance.

“The referee is always right,” Wissa insisted when asked about the penalty kick decision at full-time. Silva disagreed. “It was a completely wrong decision by the referee,” he sighed. ‘I can’t see anything there. It was an obvious and obvious mistake.”

Brentford was probably always unaffected by Fulham’s 10 men, adding a third late on to give the score the shine their performance deserved. Substitute Kristoffer Ajer charged down the right flank, combined with Rico Henry, and put the ball on a backboard for Mbeumo to tap home for his brace.

“It was a really good (gig),” said Bees boss Thomas Frank. “This win was 100 per cent for our fans and I hope they have a fantastic night in the pubs along the Thames.” Maybe they will come across Silva drowning his sorrows.

The Bees’ decision not to get an expensive replacement for Ivan Toney seems to have paid off

Fulham captain Tim Ream was sent off in the second half for a second bookable offence

It was an unsettling glimpse into life without Aleksandar Mitrovic for Marco Silva’s side