Brentford

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Thomas Frank has officially started his duties as Tottenham manager but, seven days after his departure, Brentford are still hunting for their next manager.

There will understandably be a lot to consider after Frank's seven-year stint at the club.

With the 2025-26 season due to get underway in less than two months, should the Bees be acting quickly to prepare themselves for the upcoming season or taking their time to find the right replacement?

In recent days, the club has been linked with recently-sacked Ange Postecoglou and Ipswich Town boss Kieran McKenna.

Another name doing the rounds is Italian manager Francesco Farioli, who recently left Ajax after just one season in the wake of an end-of-season collapse that cost them the Eredivisie title.

But there are also suggestions that Brentford might opt to internally promote current set-piece coach Keith Andrews, who joined Frank's coaching staff last summer.

The Bees have previous form for choosing this route, having appointed Frank when he was former manager Dean Smith's assistant.

So now that the rumours are in full swing, we want you to tell us who you would like to see fill Thomas Frank's boots at the club.

Would your pick be one of the above or is there someone that's currently going under the radar?

Let us know your thoughts here

Brentford have put a £50m price tag on striker Yoane Wissa, with the 28-year-old DR Congo international a target for Nottingham Forest, Tottenham, Arsenal, Fenerbahce and Galatasaray. (Teamtalk), external

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The 2025-26 Premier League fixtures are official - so we asked for your thoughts on the fixture schedule and where Brentford will be after the first 10 games.

Here are some of your replies:

Ian: All games in the Premier League are difficult. With the recent upheaval at G-tech Community Stadium, the opening 10 games are not going to be easy. However, Brentford will surprise the football world and continue the good work of last season. After 10 games, which I have used as my own indicator for many years, Brentford will be around mid-table.

Rob: Brentford's position after 10 games will very much depend on what scraps Thomas Frank and Spurs have left behind.

Terry: It depends on who we get in as a manager and what backroom staff he has. I am worried though.

Geoff: Brentford's league position will greatly depend on who the new manager is and the replacements for the backroom team that have been devastated by those leaving with Thomas Frank.

Ken: There are no easy games in this league. If the new manager is promoted from within the club, we will have some continuity to hold our own and kick on. It's very important that we make home advantage count. We should hold our own because we have the personnel to stay up.

Opta has ranked the difficulty of each top-flight team's first five Premier League fixtures of the 2025-26 season.

According to Opta's model, Manchester United have the hardest start, followed by their opening-weekend opponents Arsenal and then Bournemouth.

Aston Villa's first five games have been ranked the easiest, alongside Crystal Palace.

Take a look below to see where your side places...

Aside from the opening weekend's game at Nottingham Forest and the final fixture of the season against Liverpool, all dates are subject to change as a result of broadcast and other requirements.

See Brentford's full fixture list here

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Brentford's first meeting with former manager Thomas Frank will take place at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium on the weekend of 6-7 December.

The Bees will then host Tottenham at Gtech Community Stadium just three weeks later at the end of December.

In terms of west London derbies, Brentford host Chelsea after the September international break with the return fixture midway through January, while games against Fulham are scheduled for the weekends of 20-21 September and 18-19 April.

The squad will play defending champions Liverpool on the weekend of 25-26 October before closing out the season at Anfield on Sunday, 24 May.

And what about the schedule over Christmas and New Year? Well, Brentford's festive fixtures include home games against Bournemouth and Tottenham, plus away trips to Wolves and Everton.

Looking at the fixture list, where do you think Brentford will be after 10 games? Have your say here

Brentford will travel to Nottingham Forest in their opening game of the 2025-26 Premier League season.

The match will take place on Saturday, 16 August at 15:00 BST, with the Bees' first home fixture against Aston Villa on the weekend of 23-24 August.

See Brentford's Premier League fixtures in full here

Where do you think Bees will be after 10 games and what do you make of how the fixtures have fallen? Tell us here

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Brentford will travel to Portugal for a pre-season training camp this summer as they prepare for the 2025-26 campaign.

Last year, the club were based at the Portuguese Football Federation's training ground and faced 38-time Portuguese champions Benfica at Estadio da Luz, before a meeting with Estrela da Amadora.

The club said that more information regarding a potential game during the trip, which may involve further travel, will be released in due course.

Following their return from Portugal, the Bees will make the short trip to Loftus Road on Saturday, 2 August to face Championship side Queens Park Rangers (15:00 BST kick-off).

Just six days later, they will welcome German outfit Borussia Monchengladbach to Gtech Community Stadium on Friday, 8 August (19:30).

As the transfer window is now open again until 1 September, we asked you to tell us one player you want Brentford to sign, and a player you want to be sold this summer.

Here are some of your comments:

Jason: I'd be in favour of swapping Bryan Mbeumo with Richarlison. It might not be a popular view but thinking outside the box got us a top 10 finish last season.

Tom: I feel that we have a good first XI - we should mainly be thinking about signing players to compete with them. However, Mbeumo's exit does mean we should sign another attacker. With Igor Thiago coming back, we don't know how good he will be in the Premier League, so we should plan for the worst and ensure we maintain a threatening front four. Equally, we've found ourselves needing an attacker from the bench this season, and all we've had are midfielders, so it would be good for squad depth.

Simon: If, as looks likely, Mbeumo is sold, the Bees would have enough funds to tempt Viktor Gyokeres to the Gtech. He hasn't played a Premier League match so could be an ideal fit.

Ben: Rumours we have a deal in the works for Antoni Milambo are exciting. I hope we get that over the line (as we failed to do with Archie Gray last season, or Antoni Nusa before that). Mbeumo leaving seems inevitable. Hopefully we can get a good price and avoid losing Yoane Wissa or any others. Replacing Mbeumo will be tough but Omari Hutchinson (Ipswich) or Badredine Bouanani (Nice) could be good long-term replacements. I'm sure the club knows best.

Brentford forward Bryan Mbeumo is leaning towards a move to Manchester United over Tottenham, despite his former manager Thomas Frank joining the latter. (Sky Sports News), external

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No sooner does the season finish and we start looking forward to key dates for the next campaign - and that will be a lot easier to do on Wednesday when the Premier League fixtures are released.

That's right, that special day in the calendar is almost here already. The day when you'll learn details of derby fixtures, Christmas opponents and end-of-season run-ins.

This page will bring you all the fixtures when they drop at 09:00 BST on Wednesday and we'll be giving you the chance to have your say on how things look.

The new campaign kicks off on the weekend of Saturday, 16 August and it will conclude on Sunday, 24 May 2026, when all 10 games will take place at the same time.

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Brentford first-team assistant coach Claus Norgaard has left the west London club, saying he departs with "fond memories".

Norgaard arrived at Gtech Community Stadium in 2022, and has helped the Bees to two top-half finishes in the Premier League.

"I would like to thank Matthew Benham, Phil Giles, Lee Dykes, Ben Ryan and the players and staff for making this an enjoyable and rewarding chapter.

"There is such a strong culture and that has contributed greatly to a very successful period.

"Brentford will always have a place in my heart. I will look out for their results and wish everybody associated with the club the best of luck for the future."

Director of football Phil Giles added: "In the three seasons Claus was a Brentford coach, we finished in the top half of the Premier League twice. That is the legacy he leaves.

"Everybody at the club wishes him well in his next role."

Brentford are searching for a new manager after Thomas Frank's move to Tottenham was confirmed on Thursday.

The transfer window is open again for summer business to be conducted.

Clubs can now strike deals until the deadline at 19:00 BST on 1 September.

So if you can sell one player who is it? And if you can buy one player only, who gets the nod?

Give us reasons for your choice but remember, in this instance it's a strict one player leaving and one coming in.

Send your selections

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After Thomas Frank issued his goodbye statement, we wanted to hear some of your messages for him as he departs Brentford.

Here are some of your comments:

Mike: Thank you very much for all of your hard work and honesty in making Brentford FC who they are today. We are no longer minnows in a big pond, we are now becoming gladiators in the Premier League and showing the giants of the league we are not pushovers. So thank you Thomas Frank and good luck at Spurs. See you during the season.

Charlie: Thank you Thomas. You put everything you have into bringing us up to the Premier League and kept us there, but above all you came across as somebody we all call a friend. Good luck.

Phil: Thanks Thomas for being a good coach but an even better human, and for realising that our values are what make Brentford special. Thanks for being friends with Woody, for thanking the fans and being an eloquent advocate for our "bus stop in Hounslow".

George: Frank will always be welcome in our little corner of London - I'm not shocked to see him depart for a new challenge (and I don't envy just how big of a challenge he's picked), but I am very sad to see him go. I hope the incredible drive and belief he instilled in our fans and players can now live on beyond him.

Dave: Thank you Thomas for bringing Brentford fans the best times ever. Truly you brought us halcyon days. Good luck at Spurs, you have earned your chance.

Christopher: Thank you Thomas for the dedication, care and consideration you provided for everything Brentford. As a lifelong fan I will miss your positive presence and I hope your sense of community remains woven into the soul of the club. We understand that you are following your dream. The very best of good fortune, we will miss you and your heartfelt values.

Ian Westbrook
Fan writer

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So the long drawn-out saga of Thomas Frank crossing London to join Tottenham from Brentford is thankfully over.

It has been a hard one to take for a number of reasons:

• losing one of our best-ever managers;

• the media frenzy and length of time this has taken;

• three of our backroom staff also going.

Let me get one thing straight first of all.

I have no problem with Frank wanting to take the chance to manage in the Champions League. His stock is high, the chance has come up now and may never have happened again. He had to do it and I totally understand that.

I always said that if or when he left us, it would be to a really big club or to the Denmark national team.

He has been a brilliant manager for us and I will always be grateful for that. He has achieved so much, taking us into the Premier League and establishing us there, earning some famous wins over the big boys, bringing an amazing culture and unity to the club and having a real bond with us fans.

However, what I and other supporters are upset about is him taking the core of our backroom staff too.

We promoted internally when other managers like Uwe Rosler and Dean Smith left and Frank was one of the beneficiaries of that policy.

This has probably stopped us doing that now and makes appointing a replacement much slower than necessary.

We know that owner Matthew Benham and director of football Phil Giles are brilliant operators and would have had a contingency plan and we trust them to get it right.

We can also still do well again next season.

But this whole episode has been way messier than it needed to be.

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Brentford fan Craig Tillyer from the Ealing Road podcast has reflected on the "incredible memories" under Thomas Frank after the Danish boss' departure to become Tottenham head coach was confirmed.

"As a club and fanbase we will miss him very much," Tillyer told BBC Radio 5 Live's Football Daily podcast.

"He's taken us from being a mid-table Championship club to a mid-table and succeeding Premier League club, while giving us some incredible moments over the past seven years.

"From losing eight of his first 10 games with Brentford to beating Manchester City, Chelsea and Spurs away, beating Arsenal in the club's first Premier League game and beating Manchester United 4-0.

"There are so many incredible memories and he is one of the nice guys in football."

Tillyer also pointed to Brentford's history of successfully replacing key players when asked about the club's plans for the post-Frank era.

"We can go back a long time with players. We replaced Andre Gray with Scott Hogan and then when he moved on we replaced him with Neal Maupay," he added. "From him we got Ollie Watkins, then Ivan Toney, then Bryan Mbeumo stepped up.

"We have had so much success and such a fantastic track record of replacing important players in the squad - but we are in a new time as a football club where we having to replace arguably the most successful coach we've ever had."

Listen to the full episode on BBC Sounds

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Thomas Frank has issued an emotional goodbye message to Brentford after his departure to join Tottenham was confirmed on Thursday.

Frank leaves the Bees after seven years, in which he took the club to the Premier League and established them as a mid-table club in the top flight, recording 13th, ninth, 16th and 10th-place finishes.

The full goodbye message reads:

"To everyone associated with Brentford Football Club, the time has come for me to move on.

"But even as I leave, I know I have left a big piece of my heart at Brentford, not just at the football club but with the community and, of course, the incredible and loyal supporters.

"I want to extend my profound gratitude to the club for giving me the chance to pursue my dreams and for everyone involved who made the journey such a memorable one.

"For my family and me, it has been a privilege to be allowed to be part of such a special community - it's an experience and adventure that we will cherish for life. So, thank you.

"Whatever we have achieved, we have achieved together, and our success is built on unity, spirit, courage and ambition at every level of the club and among the fans.

"Everybody has contributed, and every contribution has been invaluable. I am not just leaving a football club, I am saying goodbye to friends whose support through good and bad times I will carry with me always.

"I would like to say a special word of thanks to Matthew Benham. His trust and friendship have meant so much, and the fact he gave me a chance in English football means I will always owe him a debt of gratitude. Thank you, Matt.

"So, while this is a goodbye, I hope the relationships I have built with everybody will be lasting ones and, of course, we will meet again in the wonderful world of football. Thank you."

So, you've read Frank's farewell message - what would be your goodbye message to him?

Let us know here

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Thomas Frank proved that when Brentford lost one important individual, such as Ivan Toney, the collective was still strong.

However, with Frank having now moved across London to Tottenham and the possibility of losing star players like Bryan Mbeumo and Yoane Wissa, it could potentially be really difficult for the Bees.

Who they bring in to replace Frank is going to be really interesting. Who is available? Who is the right person for the job and to manage the group of players that are left? Then, are Brentford going to spend to replace any players who leave?

They had the know-how under Frank to do this, but he is not there any more.

What does help is that they already have players with the quality to play in the Premier League.

They are already above the teams coming up from the Championship, and we have seen in recent years how the promoted sides have really struggled to adapt - to the speed, the quality and the fact you cannot take as many risks. Brentford are already equipped for that.

So, if Brentford really want to avoid a possible relegation fight next season, they have to appoint the right manager, and then they have to spend and try to replace any outgoing players with similar quality.

The fact they have been in the Premier League for the time they have and have that stability really helps them.

It is going to be a different kind of campaign for them this time around without Frank, but I certainly do not think they will be relegated, even if they also lose players like Mbeumo.

Fara Williams was speaking to BBC Sport's Nicola Pearson

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Brentford will block attempts by new Tottenham manager Thomas Frank to bring midfielder Christian Norgaard with him from his former club. (Givemesport), external

The Bees and West Ham are both interested in Rangers and Morocco striker Hamza Igamane, 22, after he scored 16 goals in the Scottish Premiership last season. (Foot Mercato - in French), external

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We asked you for your thoughts on who Thomas Frank's replacement at Brentford should be, after the Dane’s departure to take over at Premier League rivals Tottenham.

Here are some of your comments:

Dave: Kieran McKenna looks like he would be a good fit at Brentford. He was well regarded at Manchester United and did well with Ipswich on a limited budget.

Steve: McKenna as his style of football and the tactics he employs suit Brentford's existing tactical approach.

Rob: Anyone apart from McKenna and Scott Parker - both were out of their depth during their previous stints in the Premier League.

Stephen: Parker and McKenna are relegation specialists, and the last people we need. All these names seem really unambitious choices. Why aren't we looking at successful managers from foreign leagues, as Bournemouth and Wolves have both done with great success?

Brian: I trust the ownership to find a brilliant replacement as they always do. He won't leave USA , but my ideal candidate would be Mauricio Pochettino. He has an excellent track record on developing younger players. It would also be nice for him to manage a project and be allowed to see it through for once.

AC: Well, was hoping for Cochrane but he's gone with Frank. Like the idea generally of promoting from within, which is also the structure the club had in place, so club legend Kevin O'Connor could be a shout. Not keen on Parker so hope that's not the direction they go in.

Ian: Neil MacFarlane, for me. Wealth of experience in our B team and with his national team. Has helped promote some of our best youngsters we've ever had and had a clear philosophy when you watch his sides. Also his assistant is club legend Sam Saunders so that would be pretty good too!