THE JANUARY TRANSFER WINDOW
It has been a strange season so far and the word that immediately springs to mind to describe what has occurred to date can only be “frustration.”
Despite suffering from what has turned into a never-ending injury epidemic, Brentford go into the Christmas campaign with 19 points from 17 games – a total that with some justification they feel should be a lot, lot higher.
The squad has been ravaged by injury, illness and suspensions and the majority of injuries have not been your normal common or garden knocks but ones that necessitate long term absences.
As we speak the following players remain unavailable:
- Aaron Hickey
- Rico Henry
- Kristoffer Ajer
- Mathias Jensen
- Kevin Schade
- Bryan Mbeumo
- Josh Dasilva
Ben Mee, after his recent return from injury started a three-match ban after the Villa encounter and Frank Onyeka was also suspended (Wolves match last Wednesday) after the same match. Thankfully the likes of Nathan Collins and Mikkel Damsgaard are now available for selection with Damsgaard looking extremely lively against Aston Villa with hopes that given freedom from injury he will develop into the player we all thought and hoped we were buying.
The elephant in the room is of course Ivan Toney, absent all season through no fault of the club and despite the efforts of the magnificent and irreplaceable Mbeumo – another long-term absentee – he has been sorely missed. His return cannot come soon enough. He is available from the middle of January but which team will he be playing for for the remainder of the season?
Thank heaven for the emergence of Yehor Yarmoliuk – an absolute star in the making, and the rebirth of the amazing Saman Ghoddos, released without any qualms or complaints at the end of last season, now happily resurrected and starring wherever required in a variety of positions. He totally symbolises the spirit of Brentford at its best.
Safely ensconced in midfield it has to be said that so far this is certainly the season to have problems well above and beyond your control, as it would appear that the three promoted teams, Burnley, Sheffield United and Luton Town, for all their efforts and bravery, are well out of their depth and all three look likely to return from whence they came.
We are now fast approaching January when the Transfer Window reopens and gives clubs the chance to replenish and reinvigorate their squads and it might be said that our squad could certainly do with some beefing up even with several players apparently close to a return to action. This is evidenced by the number of leads that have been given up and late goals conceded owing to lack of quality, experience and fresh legs on the bench.
The key problem has been that as soon as one injured player comes off the treatment table, returns to the grass, plays the odd B Team and behind closed door game and is eventually available for selection, another couple have invariably incurred fresh injuries and we are pretty much back to where we started.
Injuries are part and parcel of football but in all my years of supporting the club I have never seen such a never-ending spate of serious issues affecting the overwhelming majority of the squad. Without denigrating the others, it is even tougher and more galling when all of you “X Factor” players in Henry, Jensen, Toney and Mbeumo are simultaneously unavailable and the loss of Raya has added to the problems with Mark Flekken understandably still finding his feet in a new country and league.
January is a month that is traditionally filled with rumour, speculation, excitement and dashed hopes and for some clubs it would seem that common sense goes out of the window as they splash the cash in what is traditionally a sellers’ market with inflated prices and far too many clubs chasing far too little available talent.
It is certainly a time to lie in the long grass, wryly observe the failings of others who blew large sums of money on inadequate players and keep your powder dry, especially when any sane and rational observer would agree that Brentford have perhaps no more than a 1% chance of relegation.
I would concur that the injury crisis has perhaps put the club’s ambitions of challenging for Europe and playing more expansive, attacking football on hold for the time being but the FA Cup still remains as a keenly anticipated target.
Normally January is a time when Brentford weigh up the odds and decide to do as little as possible. Perhaps add a couple of players to add impetus to a promotion push such as Shandon Baptiste, Tariqe Fosu and Halil Dervişoğlu in 2020, or not look a gift horse in the mouth as was the case with Christian Eriksen in 2022. Last January a promising attacker was added in Kevin Schade, initially on loan with the objective of bedding him in for the following season – an ambition shattered by the serious injury he ridiculously and almost laughably incurred late on in the pre-match warmup against Everton.
For the last few years Brentford have not sold any of their prime assets in January. This season it is all hands to the pumps with every fit body needed to bolster a severely depleted squad. David Raya remains on loan at Arsenal and I would not expect the permanent deal for him to be signed and sealed until the end of the season when the initial agreement expires.
As for Ivan Toney – who knows. He is training well behind the scenes and appeared in a couple of behind closed doors games and is due back in action fairly shortly. It is clear that his sights are set on a bigger club than Brentford and to earn his place in the England squad for next year’s European Championships. He is certain to score goals wherever he plays.
Given the injury to Mbeumo, the loss of Wissa to the African Cup of Nations and Schade’s delayed return it would surely be the height of folly – or a calculated risk – to sell him in January. I am sure that Toney acknowledges his debt to the club and its supporters but money and opportunity talks and the question is whether an Arsenal or Chelsea or similar will come in with an acceptable bid or wait to pounce at the end of the season.
If he goes then a replacement is needed and strikers of his ilk and quality are hard to find at a realistic price – even if an embryonic talent such as the now injured Miles Leaburn at Charlton Athletic.
We have struggled at full back given the loss of the talented Henry and Hickey. The now injured Ajer filled in well at right back where Mads Roerslev has struggled to make the necessary impact, Janelt is wasted at left back and Saman Ghoddos has filled in exuberantly on both flanks, but he too will be missing for the Asian Cup for most of January and perhaps even into February.
Perhaps we will break our customary preference for developing our own talent by bringing in a loanee full back to help cover the gaps and Ian Maatsen of Chelsea has been mentioned as a possibility but he might have bigger fish to fry than us in January.
Time and effort were expended in late August endeavouring to bring in a club record elite winger but without success. Maybe we have moved on from our initial targets – maybe we will go in again for a couple of them or even try elsewhere. Another embryonic Ollie Watkins or Said Benrahma with pace, power and guile would certainly not come amiss.
Otherwise, I do not see us doing very much beyond working hard at restoring the squad to as many fit players as possible. If we could find a young prospect who we could nurture for a year or so then maybe.
We have sent a bevy of young talent out on loan and the likes of Cox, Crama, Trevitt, Stevens, Oyegoke and Maghoma should be left where they are to gain more experience and battle wounds. Trevitt, Stevens, Cox and Maghoma (a seeming reincarnation of Romaine Sawyers) in particular are whetting the appetite and are real prospects for the near future.
As always there will be far more speculation than there is actual activity in January and of course I will probably be entirely wrong in what I have anticipated will take place as this is an ever changing and evolving situation but we will all have fun as we wait and see what transpires.