HOPING TO END SEVENTY-YEAR WAIT
Brentford’s value-driven approach fires Premier League charge
BRENTFORD are pushing hard for a return to the English top flight after more than 70 years away, with head coach Thomas Frank highlighting their values-driven approach as one reason for the club’s success.
The Londoners, renowned for their canny transfer dealings, are eyeing an automatic promotion spot after posting two straight wins following the return from the coronavirus lockdown.
Frank admits his side, third in the second-tier Championship behind slumbering giants Leeds United and West Bromwich Albion, would be in “dreamland” if they reached the Premier League.
Yesterday Brentford, wellplaced to qualify for the play-offs, traveled to Reading, with seven games left of the regular season.
The west London club, who last appeared in the top division of English football in 1947, cannot boast the big crowds of their Championship rivals although they will soon be moving from Griffin Park to a new, larger stadium nearby.
But they have become renowned as a financially stable club who have used a data-driven recruitment model to buy low and sell high.
In April they posted a £20 million (RM105 million) profit for the financial year to the end of June 2019. They returned a profit of more than £27 million from player sales, including John Egan to Sheffield United and Chris Mepham to Bournemouth.
Danish boss Frank told AFP that a big part of the ethos of the club is only buying players whose character fits.
“Our success is down to different things but character and values are key above anything else,” said the 46year-old.
Being humble and a team player are central to Frank’s list of requirements at the club.
“To achieve things you can only do it together. Nobody can do it on their own, not even (Lionel) Messi. He needs great teammates around him.”