SM
Netherlands vs. Hungary: 19 hrs 22 mins
Upcoming predictions and previews
Collect News Data

Thomas Frank highlights Brentford's 'remarkable story' as Premier League beckons

:Headline: Thomas Frank highlights Brentford's 'remarkable story' as Premier League beckons:
The Bees have come a long way under the ownership of Matthew Benham.
Sports Mole

Brentford head coach Thomas Frank hopes people will see the bigger picture as the club look to continue a journey of enlightenment and punch above their weight in the Premier League.

The Bees host Arsenal on Friday night back in the top flight for the first time since the 1946/47 campaign.

Under the ownership of Matthew Benham it has been some journey for the west London club, who finished third last season in the Sky Bet Championship and went on to win the play-off final at Wembley.

In 2016, Brentford made the difficult decision to close the academy, opting instead to run a 'B' squad of players aged 17-21 and produce a group aimed to act as a direct feeder into the first team.

While the 'Moneyball' recruitment approach might not be for everyone, it has seen the club gain major returns for taking a calculated risk on seemingly under-valued talent before developing them into prized assets to sell on for a tidy profit – such as with the likes of Ollie Watkins, Said Benrahma, Neal Maupay and Chris Mepham.

Frank, though, maintains things are much more complex than a simple gamble which paid off handsomely, and it is an approach which the club hope will see them able to hold their own among England's elite once again after a 74-year absence.

"Brentford is a remarkable story about strategy, enlightenment, but also being unbelievably brave," Frank said.

"In the play-off final we had Mads Roerslev in our side, a player who couldn't get into the team in the second best league in Denmark two years ago, so there are different pathways.

"There are, though, not many teams which take chances with their recruitment as we do, but of course it is not chance, like we just pick a random player.

Danish defender Mads Roerslev has made the most of his opportunity with the Bees (Mike Egerton/PA)

"We work on that with data, with video scouting and analysing everything to make sure that they fit into our style of play and our specific criteria.

"It is more the bigger picture that people would look at us and say: 'the way they do it is quite remarkable with less money than everyone in the Premier League and can still play an interesting and attractive brand of football and be forward thinking', that is my hope."

The spotlight will be on Bees talisman Ivan Toney, who finished last season with 31 goals in the Championship.

Frank maintains Brentford will tackle the Premier League on the front foot.

"Of course we are all learning along the way, but our big aim is to attack in the Premier League and I don't see why we could not," the Danish coach said.

Ivan Toney's goals helped fire Brentford into the Premier League (Mike Egerton/PA)

"I only say, though, for as many minutes as possible because even in the Championship you cannot attack for 90 minutes, you need to defend for several minutes depending on the opponent, but we will try to attack as much as possible against Arsenal.

"If you want to achieve something, you need to be positive. You cannot defend and then try to achieve something.

"Of course I am aware that we need to do both very well because if you don't defend very well then you don't have a chance to also attack, so we will attack."

Frank added: "We are very aware we are facing world-class players but we need to believe because that is half the way to the victory.

"It is easy to believe before the game, but it is also during the game in the tough spells where we need to keep believing, keep doing the right things, keep staying in there. That is where you really show that top attitude."

body check tags ::

amp_article__459168 : Collect and Make Data not in DataBase  : 
last updated article - 2021-08-12 21:47:16:
html db last update - 2021-08-12 21:47:16 :

ex - 7200 : read : write cache and make html

Click here for more stories about Thomas Frank

Click here for more stories about Brentford

Share this article now:
BM
Read Next:
Brentford boss Thomas frank over club's Premier League ambitions
>


Sports Mole provides in-depth previews and predictions for every match from the biggest leagues and competitions in world football.
AL
Sign up for our FREE daily preview newsletter direct to your inbox!
Read more about Thomas Frank Football Football Football Football Football Football Football Football
Follow @SportsMole for the latest breaking news stories, and follow @sm_headlines to get every headline from Sports Mole
Recommended Next on SM
Brentford boss Thomas frank over club's Premier League ambitions
Five-star Portugal stroll to Nations League quarters with Ronaldo-inspired win over Poland
Is Havertz still Arsenal's best option? Three "standout" striker targets assessed
Kuhn replacement found? Celtic handed £8.5m January transfer boost

Page options

Premier League Table
TeamPWDLFAGDPTS
1Liverpool119112161528
2Manchester CityMan City117222213923
3Chelsea115422113819
4Arsenal115421812619
5Nottingham ForestNott'm Forest115421510519
6Brighton & Hove AlbionBrighton115421915419
7Fulham115331613318
8Newcastle UnitedNewcastle115331311218
9Aston Villa115331717018
10Tottenham HotspurSpurs1151523131016
11Brentford115152222016
12Bournemouth114341515015
13Manchester UnitedMan Utd114341212015
14West Ham UnitedWest Ham113351319-612
15Leicester CityLeicester112451421-710
16Everton112451017-710
17Ipswich TownIpswich111551222-108
18Crystal Palace11146815-77
19Wolverhampton WanderersWolves111371627-116
20Southampton11119721-144
Scroll for more - Tap for full version


Sports Mole provides in-depth previews and predictions for every match from the biggest leagues and competitions in world football.
AL
Sign up for our FREE daily preview newsletter direct to your inbox!

Loading ...

Failed to load data.

history www

Five-star Portugal stroll to Nations League quarters with Ronaldo-inspired win over Poland

1

FP

"An idea" - Amorim discusses his plans for Man United's trip to Ipswich

2

&I

Still rewriting history: Ronaldo breaks international record in Portugal win

NEW

3

SR

Preview: Leicester vs. Man Utd - prediction, team news, lineups

NEW

4

PL

"The engine of the Premier League" - Amorim makes promise to Man United fans

5

&E

Major update: Guardiola 'makes crucial decision' over Man City future

6

MU

Audacious Arsenal swap deal in tatters due to 29-year-old contract talks?

7

AA

Lyon provisionally relegated! Which Gones stars could move to the Premier League?

8

LP

Record-breaking Brazilian wonderkid 'could join Man United in January'

9

RB

Preview: England vs. Rep. Ireland - prediction, team news, lineups

10

PE


. . . . . . . . . . . . . . .