Brentford Appoint Andrews as Manager

Brentford have appointed Keith Andrews as their new Head Coach following Thomas Frank’s move to Tottenham Hotspur. 

Frank left the Bees to join Tottenham earlier this month after seven years in West London and following an extensive recruitment process, Brentford bosses have opted to promote set-piece coach, Andrews to the managerial role on a three-year contract until June 2028.

This isn’t the first time that Brentford has promoted from within after Andrews’ precedessor, Frank was promoted from assistant head coach to the main managerial position following Dean Smith’s exit in October 2018.

Following confirmation of his promotion, Andrews said that he is aware of how special the job is in taking on and building upon Frank’s legacy.

“Pretty humbled would be the overriding feeling, honoured that I’m the person that’s been chosen to take the club into the next chapter.

“I’m very appreciative of the owner, the board and the staff that have supported this decision. It’s an opportunity I feel I’m very capable of doing and ready to do.

“I don’t know where to start in terms of what’s exciting me because there’s so much: the potential of the football club, the potential of the players and the potential of the staff that underpin what has brought success to this brilliant football club.”

Andrews also teased what fans can expect as he continued: “I want a team that the fans feel represents them and what they want to see on a Saturday,” he explained.

“We want to play winning football, we want to be competitive, we want to have an edge, we want to play dynamic, relentless football but we want to be organised.

“We want to have huge moments, huge games, and I think the big one is that we want to have an attitude and a relentlessness of progression. We really need to maintain that, and that’s on a daily basis.

“If you do that, the rest looks after itself.”

Andrews added that the continuity of knowing the players already will be of benefit to both him and the squad as he looks to develop the youngsters.

“It’s a massive advantage to know the players inside out, I’ve got a really good connection with the players. The ceiling is massive in terms of what we can achieve and I’ve got so much belief in them.

“I love being on the grass, I love developing young players, I love seeing the growth in young players as players and as human beings. There’s clear alignment between myself and the football club on that.

“There will be a clear plan to try and develop our talented young players and also our older players, because development doesn’t just stop when you get to a certain age; it’s for every single player, and we’ll support them in every single way we can.”

Brentford’s Director of Football, Phil Giles added that Andrews “is a very good fit,” who already knows the club from the past 12 month and commands respect from the entire dressing room and the playing style from under Frank.

“He gets on with everyone, he’s very open and he’s a learner. Keith is clear in what he wants, he’s detailed, and the players and staff like and respect him.

“He understands the players in the building and the way we’ve played and trained under Thomas Frank.

“Keith will bring his own evolution but isn’t starting from scratch, so hopefully we can make some quick progress.

“He’s a very good coach and has clear ideas about how he wants the team to improve. We were looking for somebody not just to maintain what we’ve been doing but actually try and get better.”

On replacing members of Frank’s coaching staff, Giles added that the club are currently working on recruiting replacement backroom staff to support Andrews.

“There’s been a lot of work going into what the team around Keith looks like. How do we take what we had last year and get better? That process is ongoing.

“We have to look at the blend of skills and experience. It’s an exciting project to have these roles open together.

“We’ll build it over time and learn about strengths and weaknesses. We’ll build it step by step and get the right balance.”

Andrews’ first competitive match in charge of the Bees will come on Sunday 17 August in their Premier League opener away at Nottingham Forest, before he makes his managerial bow at home to Aston Villa on weekend of 23-24 August.