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Brentford have embraced counter attacking football under Keith Andrews

Brentford have embraced counter attacking football under Keith Andrews

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To say it was a summer of change at Brentford would be a bit of an understatement. 

By Sam McGuire

The Bees lost manager Thomas Frank to Spurs and captain Christian Nørgaard to Arsenal.  Starting goalkeeper Mark Flekken left for Bayer Leverkusen while attacking duo Bryan Mbeumo and Yoane Wissa were sold for a combined £120million to Manchester United and Newcastle United, respectively. 

Between them last season, Wissa and Mbeumo scored 39 goals in the Premier League, 60% of the team’s total. Add in assists and the forwards had a hand in 76% of the goals scored by the Bees. 

A lot of people focused on Bournemouth being raided following a successful season but Brentford underwent a significant rebuild during the same summer they appointed a new manager. 

Many had tipped them to be involved in a relegation battle following the appointment of former set piece coach Keith Andrews,  but as we head into November, the Bees are 13th in the Premier League, just three points behind fifth placed Manchester City, a point behind free spending Chelsea and two being reigning champions Liverpool. 

Brentford have had a tricky start to the new season. Just nine games into the campaign and they’ve already faced off against Chelsea, Manchester United, Liverpool and Manchester City. Remarkably, the Bees have taken seven points from those four clashes. They scored a late equaliser against Chelsea to claim a 2-2 draw, beat Manchester United 3-1 and then dismantled the champions at the Gtech Community Stadium on their way to a 3-2 victory last time out. City are the only team from that group to beat Andrews’ side and that was only a narrow 1-0 loss. 

The Bees have managed to bed in players while also allowing others to step into the limelight following the departures of others. 

For example, Kevin Schade and Igor Thiago are now the main men in attack in a post-Mbeumo and Wissa world. Thiago leads the way with six goals this term for Brentford while Schade has two. The pair are a handful for any opponent, as Andrews hinted at recently. 

“The one thing we have got is individual brilliance,” said the 45-year-old.

“I think we really have that in the squad – players capable of moments. That comes from the environment, the support they get, the training model as we are big on developing players’ individual qualities.”

Dango Ouattara, a big-money signing from Bournemouth this summer, has also impressed for the Bees. He scored against Liverpool and was a real handful against West Ham United, having five shots and created three chances in that game. 

The system plays to the strengths of these individuals in attack. Brentford have embraced counter-attacking football. They rank 19th for possession in the English top-flight this term but are seventh of Expected Goals and fifth for Big Chances. They might not have much of the ball but when they do, they make it count. 

Caoimhin Kelleher arrived from Liverpool and has settled quickly. Despite losing Ben Mee this summer, the Bees look resolute defensively with new skipper Nathan Collins and Sepp van den Berg bossing things in the heart of the defence. Ahead of the centre-backs is another new signing, Jordan Henderson. He arrived from Ajax on a free transfer, reportedly rejecting a move to Porto. The one-time Liverpool captain replaced Nørgaard in the middle third and currently leads the way for assists with two. That is looking like one of the shrewdest signings of the summer. 

The only other summer arrival was Antoni Milambo from Feyenoord. The 20-year-old signed for a reported £16million but is being eased into life in England, making just one Premier League appearance and two Carabao Cup outings. Brentford have a great track record with developing young, attacking talent, so expect Milambo to make an impression with the Bees in the near future. 

Andrews, although this is his first job in management, knows what it takes to be successful in the Premier League. He’s assembled a physical side, one with pace in abundance, and he’s making sure they make the most of home advantage. 

Speaking after the match against Liverpool, he said: “The team’s growing, clearly: the relationships of the players, the rapport of the players; there’s trust in the group. I wouldn’t be able to sleep at night if I felt teams were coming here and having a comfortable game.”

And no team has managed to have a comfortable game at the Gtech Community Stadium. The Bees have the joint-fourth best home record in the English top-flight and Man City, with the freescoring Erling Haaland within their ranks, are the only team to beat the Bees on home turf this season. 

Brentford have a squad to really push for a top-half finish this term. They have a group of players with a point to prove and it’s the perfect storm for Andrews and his staff. 

(Cover image from IMAGO)

You can follow every Brentford game with FotMob this season – featuring deep stats coverage, xG, and player ratings. Download the free app here.

Brentford have embraced counter attacking football under Keith Andrews

To say it was a summer of change at Brentford would be a bit of an understatement. 

By Sam McGuire

The Bees lost manager Thomas Frank to Spurs and captain Christian Nørgaard to Arsenal.  Starting goalkeeper Mark Flekken left for Bayer Leverkusen while attacking duo Bryan Mbeumo and Yoane Wissa were sold for a combined £120million to Manchester United and Newcastle United, respectively. 

Between them last season, Wissa and Mbeumo scored 39 goals in the Premier League, 60% of the team’s total. Add in assists and the forwards had a hand in 76% of the goals scored by the Bees. 

A lot of people focused on Bournemouth being raided following a successful season but Brentford underwent a significant rebuild during the same summer they appointed a new manager. 

Many had tipped them to be involved in a relegation battle following the appointment of former set piece coach Keith Andrews,  but as we head into November, the Bees are 13th in the Premier League, just three points behind fifth placed Manchester City, a point behind free spending Chelsea and two being reigning champions Liverpool. 

Brentford have had a tricky start to the new season. Just nine games into the campaign and they’ve already faced off against Chelsea, Manchester United, Liverpool and Manchester City. Remarkably, the Bees have taken seven points from those four clashes. They scored a late equaliser against Chelsea to claim a 2-2 draw, beat Manchester United 3-1 and then dismantled the champions at the Gtech Community Stadium on their way to a 3-2 victory last time out. City are the only team from that group to beat Andrews’ side and that was only a narrow 1-0 loss. 

The Bees have managed to bed in players while also allowing others to step into the limelight following the departures of others. 

For example, Kevin Schade and Igor Thiago are now the main men in attack in a post-Mbeumo and Wissa world. Thiago leads the way with six goals this term for Brentford while Schade has two. The pair are a handful for any opponent, as Andrews hinted at recently. 

“The one thing we have got is individual brilliance,” said the 45-year-old.

“I think we really have that in the squad – players capable of moments. That comes from the environment, the support they get, the training model as we are big on developing players’ individual qualities.”

Dango Ouattara, a big-money signing from Bournemouth this summer, has also impressed for the Bees. He scored against Liverpool and was a real handful against West Ham United, having five shots and created three chances in that game. 

The system plays to the strengths of these individuals in attack. Brentford have embraced counter-attacking football. They rank 19th for possession in the English top-flight this term but are seventh of Expected Goals and fifth for Big Chances. They might not have much of the ball but when they do, they make it count. 

Caoimhin Kelleher arrived from Liverpool and has settled quickly. Despite losing Ben Mee this summer, the Bees look resolute defensively with new skipper Nathan Collins and Sepp van den Berg bossing things in the heart of the defence. Ahead of the centre-backs is another new signing, Jordan Henderson. He arrived from Ajax on a free transfer, reportedly rejecting a move to Porto. The one-time Liverpool captain replaced Nørgaard in the middle third and currently leads the way for assists with two. That is looking like one of the shrewdest signings of the summer. 

The only other summer arrival was Antoni Milambo from Feyenoord. The 20-year-old signed for a reported £16million but is being eased into life in England, making just one Premier League appearance and two Carabao Cup outings. Brentford have a great track record with developing young, attacking talent, so expect Milambo to make an impression with the Bees in the near future. 

Andrews, although this is his first job in management, knows what it takes to be successful in the Premier League. He’s assembled a physical side, one with pace in abundance, and he’s making sure they make the most of home advantage. 

Speaking after the match against Liverpool, he said: “The team’s growing, clearly: the relationships of the players, the rapport of the players; there’s trust in the group. I wouldn’t be able to sleep at night if I felt teams were coming here and having a comfortable game.”

And no team has managed to have a comfortable game at the Gtech Community Stadium. The Bees have the joint-fourth best home record in the English top-flight and Man City, with the freescoring Erling Haaland within their ranks, are the only team to beat the Bees on home turf this season. 

Brentford have a squad to really push for a top-half finish this term. They have a group of players with a point to prove and it’s the perfect storm for Andrews and his staff. 

(Cover image from IMAGO)

You can follow every Brentford game with FotMob this season – featuring deep stats coverage, xG, and player ratings. Download the free app here.