Must be fun being a Brentford fan

[The Real Buh 3,423]

26 minutes ago, aBee said:

Just back from Everton. Quite a rollercoaster!
 

It really is fun! 

Who knows about next season? Maybe Toney goes, but for lots of money. Wissa looks like he’ll kick on after a full preseason. Maybe Eriksen won’t extend. Jensen today played as well as him and played the passes leading to the first red and the second goal. We’ve been quite consistently good at recruitment for years so the summer buys will be interesting. But maybe we don’t know how to spend £25m as well as £5-15m. 
 

We might get found out but then again we’ve not stuck rigidly to a particular system and have switched it up for different opponents so have a little more unpredictability than the recent second season syndrome clubs. 

We’ve actually substantially underperformed our xG so could have been comfortably top 8 (!) whereas both seasons Sheff U were up they substantially outperformed xG. So we’re more like Brighton than them  

Even if you reduce our tally from the top 6 to match Leeds’ nul points we’d be on 38 points and safe barring a hammering by Leeds next Sunday when our biggest margin of defeat has been by 3 goals. 
 

And if it does go wrong this season will live long and the Championship is higher than most fans have seen for most of their time following the club. 

 

1 hour ago, The Real Buh said:

F@&k Brentford 

 

[Branston Pickle 3,638]

This season will have been memorable, but this is probably as good as it gets for the Bees fans - it’ll either be much the same forever more as a mid-table PL side, or they will be relegated within the next season or two, and yo-yo much like the rest of us.

Clearly both is far better than their lot for most of the last 60-or whatever years, but with the first option a degree of boredom with it all will kick in after a few years.  It’s a case of fighting for years to get there and eventually finding out it’s not actually as good as you’d dreamt.  But good luck to them, I spent many games at Griffin Park - my favourite being when they beat Leeds after we drew at Stoke a few years back, all but promoting us.

[aBee 151]

41 minutes ago, The Real Buh said:

 

 

Hi Ivan!

[norfolkbroadslim 223]

A lot of people on this thread not giving Brentford the credit they deserve. It's no accident and it's not luck why they are where they are. They have had a great first season in the Premier League.

For me this is particularly evidenced by their goal difference which is only -7. They've got to play Leeds at home in their last game. They've played all of the top teams home and away and their goal difference is still only -7.

In contrast, with Spurs still to play at home, our goal difference is -56. That's 49 goals worse than Brentford.

No I don't wish we were Brentford. I just think credit where credit is due. They've had a good season, not a lucky one, if such a thing even exists that is.

[Duncan Edwards 2,223]

You have to wonder how on earth we managed to beat them. 🤷🏻‍♂️

[TESCO 70]

3 hours ago, The Real Buh said:

We did

we bought Leroy Fer and it all went to s41t

Losing star player (Grant Holt) and replacements (van Wolfswinkel) being very sub par…

 

Would surely never happen again.

 

[nutty nigel 7,513]

Quaint little club! I was glad they won today👍

[TheBaldOne66 681]

Can’t understand all the dislike of Brentford, seems our fans are very jealous! 
 

It goes to show where we went wrong this season, in that they didn’t sign loads of untried players, just players in key positions, including Ajer, who we were after. Also got a very good manager in Frank who hasn’t made wholesale changes to the way they play unlike Farke did for us.

Instead of hating them, we should applaud them as it shows that smaller clubs can survive in the EPL.

[The Real Buh 3,423]

P   L   U   C   K   Y

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[dylanisabaddog 4,876]

12 hours ago, lincsy88 said:

Eriksen will be gone in the summer and they will finish bottom 3 next season comfortably, if he hadn't sign in January they'd have been relegated with us and Watford. 

 

Precisely. This year's Sheffield United. I watched their game yesterday and he is their equivalent of Buendia. They won't survive without him, which is a shame. 

[TeemuVanBasten 3,327]

12 hours ago, lincsy88 said:

Eriksen will be gone in the summer and they will finish bottom 3 next season comfortably, if he hadn't sign in January they'd have been relegated with us and Watford. 

But they did sign him didn't they, so they did stay up, which means another round of £100m+ next season, then additional parachute payments as you get more if you don't go straight back down. 

[cambridgeshire canary 6,680]

2 hours ago, TheBaldOne66 said:

Can’t understand all the dislike of Brentford, seems our fans are very jealous! 
 

It goes to show where we went wrong this season, in that they didn’t sign loads of untried players, just players in key positions, including Ajer, who we were after. Also got a very good manager in Frank who hasn’t made wholesale changes to the way they play unlike Farke did for us.

Instead of hating them, we should applaud them as it shows that smaller clubs can survive in the EPL.

I think its just it seems like every time we go up there's always that one annoying club that we beat last season and finished above that ends up staying up with ease while we end up rock bottom.. Sheffield, Huddersfield, Brentford..

 

And yes, I have already admitted to jealously. But at least I'm honest right?🤣

Edited May 16, 2022 by cambridgeshire canary

[Nora's Ghost 157]

But we were having fun for decades while Brentford were wallowing in the third and fourth divisions.

 

Every dog has it's day as they say.

[rock bus 850]

I just think good on them, no jealousy or envy - they have a good manager, made a few very decent signings and most importantly have played well all season.

I hope they end up beating the second year curse and stay up next year. It's good to see a relatively small club doing well and I wish them well and hope we can be equally successful on our next return to the top flight (whenever that may be),

[Nora's Ghost 157]

21 minutes ago, rock bus said:

I just think good on them, no jealousy or envy - they have a good manager, made a few very decent signings and most importantly have played well all season.

I hope they end up beating the second year curse and stay up next year. It's good to see a relatively small club doing well and I wish them well and hope we can be equally successful on our next return to the top flight (whenever that may be),

I think too many City fans don't think Brentford 'belongs' in the PL.... unlike us of course.

[Kenny Foggo 1,116]

14 hours ago, lincsy88 said:

Eriksen will be gone in the summer and they will finish bottom 3 next season comfortably, if he hadn't sign in January they'd have been relegated with us and Watford. 

 

But he did and they aren't

[Kenny Foggo 1,116]

They kept their best players and added quality rather than quantity. They deserve to stay up and good on them.

We sold our best player, never replaced him or our second best player from the promotion season & added in lots of players not good enough for the top flight. We deserved to go down.

[norfolkngood 1,086]

33 minutes ago, rock bus said:

I just think good on them, no jealousy or envy - they have a good manager, made a few very decent signings and most importantly have played well all season.

I hope they end up beating the second year curse and stay up next year. It's good to see a relatively small club doing well and I wish them well and hope we can be equally successful on our next return to the top flight (whenever that may be),

Exactly this 

Good on them for having a real go this season 

plan worked perfect good signings one outstanding in Erikson 

i would have there manager and recruitment team here in a flash ! 

[keelansgrandad 6,679]

Good on them for bucking the trend. But they need to invest to capitalise on this season.

[hogesar 9,618]

I imagine replacing Eriksen will be extremely difficult and they'll be in a relegation battle next season.

On the flipside, players like Toney have done well enough but probably not enough to demand big money attention from other Prem clubs. He's got 12 goals this season.

[Capt. Pants 4,202]

Of course it's fun being a Brentford fan, let's face it we would love to be in their position. Yes they may have a 2nd season syndrome but they have picked a good one to avoid relegation. Fulham are certainties to go down according to some on here, Bournemouth are tinpot and the team going up via the playoffs are frankly miles off our standard when we went up.

They were fortunate this season in that both us and Watford went backwards, Burnley once again on the cusp of relegation and Leeds and Everton suffering poor form and injuries. It will be tough for them but a positive start well out of the relegation zone and they'll be fine.

 

[Creedence Clearwater Couto 1,251]

So many inaccurate and lazy comparisons on this thread. 

Brentford are not Sheffield United, or Fulham, or Watford or Leeds... or whoever. Brentford are a fantastically run side that benefit from an owner who supports the club and has significant wealth. They have a fantastic football and recruitment structure, and dared to be different and innovative to gain a competitive advantage. Something Webber can only dream to aspire too. 

Let's face it, the run they've been on the last couple of months is something we can only dream of at this level. Brentford have been on an upward trajectory since 2014. They've continually sold players bought for peanuts for tens of millions of pounds. And on nearly every occasion, they've replaced that player with a like for like replacement, keeping the momentum going with little disruption. 

There's real synergy at Brentford from top to bottom. Quite frankly, I don't think there's a team in English football run better. Incredible side. 

Edited May 16, 2022 by Creedence Clearwater Couto

[TeemuVanBasten 3,327]

12 minutes ago, Creedence Clearwater Couto said:

So many inaccurate and lazy comparisons on this thread. 

Brentford are not Sheffield United, or Fulham, or Watford... or whoever. Brentford are a fantastically run side that benefit from an owner who supports the club and has significant wealth. They have a fantastic football and recruitment structure, and dared to be innovative with that to gain a competitive advantage. 

Let's face it, the run they've been on the last couple of months is something we can only dream of at this level. Brentford have been on an upward trajectory since 2014. They've sold players bought for peanuts for tens of millions on  numerous occasions. And on nearly every occasion, they've replaced that player with a like for like replacement which keeps the momentum going. 

There's real synergy at Brentford from top to bottom. Quite frankly, I don't think there's a team in English football run better. 

Leeds in recent years has seemed pretty well run though, and they haven't escaped second season syndrome.

There's seems to have been caused by their only decent striker having injury issues, partly at least. 

Suspect that if Toney had similar issues then Brentford would have had it much tougher this season.

Do sort of feel like I've disagreed with you for the sake of it though, because although I don't think Brentford will necessarily be immune to second season syndrome, I do agree that their recruitment has been consistently better than ours. 

Edited May 16, 2022 by TeemuVanBasten

[Greavsy 2,412]

10 minutes ago, TeemuVanBasten said:

Do sort of feel like I've disagreed with you for the sake of it though

TVB in disagreement with a fellow poster shocker! 

[dylanisabaddog 4,876]

1 hour ago, Creedence Clearwater Couto said:

So many inaccurate and lazy comparisons on this thread. 

Brentford are not Sheffield United, or Fulham, or Watford or Leeds... or whoever. Brentford are a fantastically run side that benefit from an owner who supports the club and has significant wealth. They have a fantastic football and recruitment structure, and dared to be different and innovative to gain a competitive advantage. Something Webber can only dream to aspire too. 

Let's face it, the run they've been on the last couple of months is something we can only dream of at this level. Brentford have been on an upward trajectory since 2014. They've continually sold players bought for peanuts for tens of millions of pounds. And on nearly every occasion, they've replaced that player with a like for like replacement, keeping the momentum going with little disruption. 

There's real synergy at Brentford from top to bottom. Quite frankly, I don't think there's a team in English football run better. Incredible side. 

Completely the opposite of Everton in every respect and good luck to them. 

They have, however, relied on one player and if they lose him in the summer I fear for them. 

[nutty nigel 7,513]

I seriously don't get this being jealous of a different club every season. Over the years you people must have been jealous of half the football league. I remember Carlisle getting in the top flight before we ever did. I was never jealous of them.

Do you discard them as soon as you move on to the next one or is there still a slight hankering in your hearts..

OTBC CTID 💛⚽💚💪

[Robert N. LiM 4,246]

1 hour ago, Creedence Clearwater Couto said:

So many inaccurate and lazy comparisons on this thread. 

Brentford are not Sheffield United, or Fulham, or Watford or Leeds... or whoever. Brentford are a fantastically run side that benefit from an owner who supports the club and has significant wealth. They have a fantastic football and recruitment structure, and dared to be different and innovative to gain a competitive advantage. Something Webber can only dream to aspire too. 

Let's face it, the run they've been on the last couple of months is something we can only dream of at this level. Brentford have been on an upward trajectory since 2014. They've continually sold players bought for peanuts for tens of millions of pounds. And on nearly every occasion, they've replaced that player with a like for like replacement, keeping the momentum going with little disruption. 

There's real synergy at Brentford from top to bottom. Quite frankly, I don't think there's a team in English football run better. Incredible side. 

Really good post. Having said that, quite a lot of it could be said about us too (the bits I put in bold). I think we should be jealous of them, but should also be using them as a model. Yes, their owner is richer than ours, but as the rest of your post suggests, it's not just (or even?) wealth that has set them apart. They've been smart. But so have we, and I think that's worth remembering during the bad times. Surely part of the reason everyone is so upset about this season is the fact that it's the first one for ages where we haven't taken a step forward...

[Creedence Clearwater Couto 1,251]

33 minutes ago, Robert N. LiM said:

Really good post. Having said that, quite a lot of it could be said about us too (the bits I put in bold). I think we should be jealous of them, but should also be using them as a model. Yes, their owner is richer than ours, but as the rest of your post suggests, it's not just (or even?) wealth that has set them apart. They've been smart. But so have we, and I think that's worth remembering during the bad times. Surely part of the reason everyone is so upset about this season is the fact that it's the first one for ages where we haven't taken a step forward...

I agree with you.

I've mentioned before in conversation with people about Norwich how our strategy shares a lot of similarities with Brentford's. Almost as if Webber noticed quite quickly they were on to something, then *followed suit*. Rather than going down the line of clubs like Forest, Sheff Wed, and others, who throw stupid wages at 'has been' players to try and get to the EPL. In other words, lazy scouting and zero creativity or innovation. Webber has certainly shown this whilst at Norwich. 

However,  the wheels have well and truly fallen off for him and Norwich. It's not just the relegation, or the manner of it, but the alarming amount of disruption behind the scenes. Losing key members of staff, almost out of the blue, with no succession planning has ripped up the notion of us being well run. 

The way Brentford operate, and the way we appeared to, succession planning is absolutely key. You need good football people above the manager and playing staff to enable this. We don't have this anymore, and when factoring in the complete disconnect between Webber and the Fans, we're in a very bad place and all that good work to build structure and stability is being undone. I think it's a one way street back to square one tbh. Webber can't rescue this, and he'll leave us in a similar state to when he took over. Which is so frustrating, when other clubs, such as Forest and Sheff wed are starting to become more savvy - due to necessity rather than innovation! 

*A key difference, Brentfords model didn't require a youth system and therefore scrapped it. A huge gamble, but one that's paying off - mainly due to good scouting and picking up the young players deemed not good enough for the likes of Chelsea, Arsenal and Spurs. No doubt, a London location helps with this. 

Edited May 16, 2022 by Creedence Clearwater Couto

[Robert N. LiM 4,246]

@Creedence Clearwater Coutothanks for the thoughtful reply: you make a convincing case that it's all over. Obviously I hope you're not right and that we can continue our general progress of the last few years in the right direction. It'll be really frustrating if that's not the case, because the whole point of having a sporting director is to continue that steady incremental improvement (the 'infinite game') and, as you say, succession planning is a big part of that. I agree there are very worrying signs on this front.

[sgncfc 1,223]

Surely we are already using them as our model? They started it first and have 3 or 4 years on us - we got a surprise promotion and haven't kicked on like we should have done, but we are still doing the same things, other than our SD lost his bottle and sacked our manager so we probably now have to start again.

They have gradually improved their squad over 7 or 8 years so that they now have a number of "weapons" - you can't call them a one man team just because they had Eriksen for 5 months. If they lose Toney they can easily replace him in their system. They still have several other quality players who have stepped up this season.

I find their coach very annoying, but I can't deny that he knows what he's doing - he destroyed Lampard tactically. Compare that with how we went about playing against the 10 men of Newcastle, in very similar circumstances.

They've made a substantial transfer profit over the last 8 years - Watkins, Benrahma, Maupay, Mepham, Konsa, Gray, Jota etc. They frequently sold their best players but they replaced them - we didn't. Their assets now include Raya, Toney, Henry, Mbweno, Jensen - all players who would walk into our team - collectively £100m? (Note that I don't include Ajer, who is not in their class and never will be but still cost them £13m which they would probably get back).

I'd say they've had a pretty good season, and they are miles and miles ahead of any of the teams who will be promoted this season.

Our squad continues to improve too - despite what some on here would seem to believe - but we are hampered by that lack of game changers at the moment. Maybe some of them will become that. The Brentford team had two more years to develop in the Championship.