Brentford begin their fifth-consecutive topflight campaign away at Nottingham Forest next week following what has been a hectic summer. Nick Bruzon looks ahead to the season.
Friday night and a big welcome awaits Brentford at the Gtech. The game against Borussia Mönchengladbach is a final run out for The Bees before a fifth successive season in the Premier League campaign begins next Sunday with the trip to Nottingham Forest. More importantly, it gives many fans a first opportunity to see the new look set up following a summer which could, politely, be described as hectic.
Last time out the rollercoaster ride of stunning home form matched with a series of blanks on the road flipped on its head at Christmas to see the Bees push all the way for a place in Europe. Whilst it wasn’t quite to be, perhaps in retrospect the missing out may be a longer-term blessing. As we’ve seen so many times in the Benham era, pain always comes before pleasure. Something about a penalty. Yeovil in the play-off final. Then promotion. Covid and Fulham in the play-off final. Then promotion. At Wembley. Not a typo. So who knows what this season could bring?
New Season, New Manager
Whatever happens, it’ll be with a much-changed squad. Head coach Thomas Frank has swapped the calm of Matthew Benham and West London for Daniel Levy and Spurs. He’s already seen James Maddison broken and the talismanic Son Heung-min play his final game for the club. No tears being shed anywhere. Thanks for the wonderful memories but it’s all in the past now. Keith Andrews coming from within the current setup as the man to replace him at Brentford.
Comings & Goings
Goalkeeper Mark Flekken has gone. After a wobbly first season he hit his groove in 24-25 although replacement Caoimhín Kelleher is a shrewd bit of business that many thought we may pull off 12 months earlier. The Irish international brings both youth and experience from Liverpool.
Bryan Mbeumo has gone. Manchester United finally meeting the asking price of £65m + £6m in add ons. Remarkable money for a remarkable player but with only a year left on his current contract, everybody comes out smiling.
Christian Norgaard has also gone. The heart of the team and our captain. Like Bryan, a survivor from Griffin Park and a player who feels, felt, like part of the furniture. So, so reliable but who could forgive him the chance to try and come third in the Premier League after getting knocked out of Europe in the Champions League quarter finals?
Perhaps he’ll be the key difference in arresting Mikel Arteta’s slow yet unstoppable descent into football-induced madness initiated by Klopp, Guardiola and Slot.
All three players huge losses in terms of their part in the team. All three making the top five in our season-long rankings last campaign. Yet all three wished well and with plenty of potential in the squad to more than fill the boots. If I’ve heard ‘Brentford are doomed’ once, I’ve heard it a million times. Watkins. Toney. Benrahma. All deemed irreplaceable. All replaced. Easily.
The Rumour Mill & Wissa’s Future
The first real challenge of the Keith Andrews era, aside from convincing outsiders he’s the right man for the job and remembering to applaud the fans, has been the Yoanne Wissa situation. Forest had a derisory nibble of the sort we used to get from West Ham before Eddie Howe and Newcastle United were also said to have slapped some below-par money on the table. With the player already having refused to play or train – if you believe what you read – a parting of the ways has seemed inevitable.
In public, interest has currently gone quiet and for now he’s back at Jersey Road. The club this week publishing a series of ‘blink to prove you are alive and well’ photos of Wissa in training.
It has all felt a bit ‘move along – nothing to see here’ although what are the club to do? They’re hardly going to air their dirty laundry in public whilst things remain in the balance.
A head on clash with a player who sounds like he has all the enthusiasm of a lobster taking a dip in the tank near the kitchen is never going to end well. Instead, it has been a case of head down and, as Manchester United discovered in the Mbeumo negotiations, never play poker with Phil Giles.
Final Pre-Season Run Out Awaits
Instead, all focus has been on the game with the Bundesliga outfit. The Bees remain a tasty-looking prospect despite the high-profile exits. Aaron Hickey and Rico Henry are fit, adding options to a defence already boosted by a significant goalkeeping upgrade. Keith now having the option of ‘choice’ at left wing back. Something we’ve not had in years. KLP performing absolute heroics to make that position his although now with the potential to start higher up the field.
Mikkel Damsgaard, Yehor Yarmoliuk and new signing Jordan Henderson the names likely to make up the central trio. Vitaly Janelt and Matthias Jensen the obvious options to mix it up.
For me, this is where the story of Brentford’s campaign will play out. Damsgaard was meteoric last season and won every award going by a country mile. If he can retain the sort of form we all had the pleasure of witnessing then it can only be a very good thing. I could watch the dribbling, the mazy runs and those laser-guided passes all day long.
Yehor Yarmoliuk the One to Watch?
Yehor looks like he is going to be the one to watch. Given his chance last time out, it would be fair to say he grasped it with both hands. I’m sure he’ll now be pencilled in to the starting XI and we are going to watch a midfield legend blossom in front of us over the coming 38 games. It’s no surprise that the club moved quickly to lock him into a contract that secures the services of the 21-year-old until 2031.
Henderson’s Experience Key
The flip side to this, at least age wise, being the arrival of current England international Jordan Henderson. His signing had been much telegraphed – as much through the club sharing the story via an ‘alert’ on the app, then retracting it quicker than you could say ‘premature release’. Yet now he is here, the only thing anybody is interested in will be how he fits in to the team.
For me, it feels very much a Pontus Jansson moment. The bringing in of a vastly experienced legend, a household name, to help guide the next generation through. His medals are nice but they are nothing more than that. If he can do it at the Gtech then Brentford are only going to come out smiling.
Attacking Options Aplenty, But But Big Boots to Fill
The attacking third is perhaps where we have the most to learn. With Wissa not so much on fire as on strike, don’t expect much out of him for a while. If at all.
Igor Thiago is a different player but the obvious replacement. How Keith fits him into this set-up is a lesson we will all learn together. Fabio Carvalho is still here and will no doubt have a zillion points to prove after a frustrating first season – but enough about his dad. Kevin Schade really hit his groove whilst we have new signing Antoni Milambo as well as finally fit (we hope) Gustavo Nunes.
Romelle Donovan has also come in from Birmingham City. He’s another investment in youth but another absolutely jam-packed full of potential. Like Yehor (and I’d also add Kayode to that list) one of those with a fantastic opportunity to start painting themselves in to the rich tapestry that is Brentford legend.
I’m sure the 18-year-old will have a phased introduction to the first team but it will be intriguing to see just what he can do.
Bring On 2025/26
Last season saw goals, goals, goals and that brief flirtation with Europe. All that stability has now been ripped up and the Bees are back to the drawing board. On and off the field. We’re about to take another step into the unknown but that’s not to say the journey will be any less exciting.
The campaign ahead is one in which most outside observers expect Brentford to struggle. And? Been there. Done that. Got the t-shirt. Being constantly written off is our unchosen modus operandi. A mantle thrust on The Bees by lazy pundits who still, even now, just don’t get how it works.
Which suits me just fine. Bring it all on and see you soon.
