'In that context' - Brentford head coach makes huge Ivan Toney claim after Bryan Mbeumo brilliance vs West Ham

Thomas Frank has offered a bold statement on the recently departed Ivan Toney after his side drew 1-1 at the Gtech Community Stadium against West Ham.

For the third consecutive match, star striker Bryan Mbeumo put the Bees up within a minute of the whistle but it was not a lead the home side would ultimately be able to hold on to with Tomas Soucek eventually finding an equaliser in the 54th minute.

Speaking to the media after the game, Frank has said that while Brentford lacked the ‘cutting edge’ to win, he believes contextually his side are ‘unbelievably fantastic’.

“They out-bottled us for first 15 minute of second half and we didn’t cope with it well enough”, Frank admitted, “But besides that we were on top and really pushed for that 2-1 win, without really having that cutting edge.

We’re missing nine first team players - six you could argue would all start. Kevin Shade then came off after 60th minute through cramp. We have nothing to shoot with after that. We have no offensive subs to try and go even more forward and they’re putting on (Crysencio) Summerville, a Greek international, a Spanish international and they have a huge budget.

“All that into context, I’m never happy when we don’t win but huge credit to the players. What we do I think is unbelievably fantastic. We lacked the cutting edge in terms of creating the clear cut chances. We didn’t have luck like Antonio. He completely missed that shot but was perfect assist.”

The Danish head coach was then asked about the brilliance of Mbeumo who scored after 38 seconds. The Cameroon international’s goal meant the Bees became the first Premier League team in history to score within the opening minute in three consecutive games.

When asked what improvement the 25-year-old could bring, and just how they’ve managed to stave off transfer interest in him ahead of the 2024/25 campaign, Frank said: “There’s always room for improvement but he is on fire. He is very good. I think last year he was on track to score 15 goals etc when he got injured.

“He had seven goals and four assists in December. I think he was the biggest miss last season. Of course we wanted Ivan to be there. Ivan was out for the whole season (8 months) so we couldn’t use him. Ivan out and then losing Bryan was a bigger hit.

“(Mbeumo) added another layer this year - five goals in six games - plus he’s still created chances, opportunities and he’s working so hard for the team. For me he’s a top player. I am convinced one day he will play for a bigger club - I’d buy him if I was a bigger club.

“He’s very happy here. Some maybe need to leave us some day, but a lot are very happy because we have a top, top environment. We’re good people, staff, players and we push each other.

“What iIve learned in football, for any player, in a way the sky’s the limit. It’s always up to the player first but it’s up to us (the staff) to maximise the potential. My biggest task in the club is to maximise potential and who knows I think Bryan has got fantastic package.”