00:00:00
00:00:01
Wildcard Wednesday: Ultimate Brentford XI Part 2
23 Plays7 days ago
This is your Wildcard Wednesday, where we complete our ultimate Brentford XI whilst discussing our favourite attacking players of the modern era. Jota or Bryan Mbeumo? Alan Judge or Josh Dasilva? Ivan Toney or Ollie Watkins?
Host: Daniel Toppin
Lydia Batalona
Instagram/X/TikTok: @gspnbrentford
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Transcript
00:00:10
officialgspn
Hello and welcome to another episode of the Daily Brentford Podcast with myself, Daniel, where today we will be compiling our ultimate Brentford XI following on from our last episode, this time focusing on the greatest attacking players of the most recent generation. Back fresh after an international break and once again joined by Lydia. How are we doing today?
00:00:29
Lydia
ah Slightly ill, so excuse the voice if it sounds a bit dodgy, but I'm good thanks.
00:00:34
officialgspn
Not so fresh after the international break then. and Just before we get going, guys, we're a brand new company, so we're looking for your support over the coming season and beyond as we look to bring you the best and most in-depth coverage across the entire network. Whether this is a five-star review on your favourite podcasting platform or a recommendation to your friends, we are very grateful for any support that we receive. So and let's go straight into it. It was quite a long episode last Wednesday. To clarify, the way we're compiling this team is we are judging the modern era as post-2008.
00:01:07
officialgspn
which is the year we won league two, 2008, 2009 season that was, which ultimately was the start of our upward curve. We're doing that just so we have a cutoff point as to when we organize this team and also when we're picking players for the team, we're not necessarily going to go with all the best players because it's quite clear that all the best players are probably the ones in the pre playing in the Premier League now, but we are judging them on a number of factors such as their impact at the time.
00:01:36
officialgspn
and their ability relative to the level we were playing at at the time, things they might have done off the pitch, um obviously on the pitch as well, and just how popular and how we feel about these boat players. So the first position we are starting on today is your central midfielders. There are more nominees, I guess, for this category than the others because like centre backs that will end up choosing two of them.
00:02:04
officialgspn
So I'll just run through who they are and then we can have a bit of a discussion about them. So the first one is Marcus Bean. He played 144 league games, 14 goals at Brentford and a league two promotion winner.
00:02:18
officialgspn
That's the one you didn't get right in the in the game the other week.
00:02:20
Lydia
yeah ah was it water
00:02:21
officialgspn
So I won't ask you about him. Next one is Adam Forshaw. He played 89 league games, scoring 11 goals. He was a 2014 league one player of the year and also a promotion winner.
00:02:34
Lydia
Yeah, that was it.
00:02:35
officialgspn
Next up we've got Jonathan Douglas, 169 games, 17 goals, another League One promotion winner and played a key role in the championship playoff campaign.
00:02:46
officialgspn
He was also the fans player of the year in 2011-2012. Next up we've got Alan McCormack, 99 league games and two goals. He was a 2013-14 fans player of the year and League One promotion winner also playing a little bit of right back.
00:03:01
officialgspn
Fans player of the year features a lot in these central midfielders actually.
00:03:03
Lydia
Yeah.
00:03:04
officialgspn
And we've got to my idea, Garaga, 210 league games, six goals, League one promotion winner and fans play of the season in 2014, 15. Ryan Woods, 122 league appearances, three goals, 2017, 2018 fans, player of the year and player player and players, player of the season, the year prior to that. And then we've got two of the current players. So we've got Mattias Jensen.
00:03:29
officialgspn
187 games, 11 goals and counting. He's obviously a championship promotion winner and Denmark International. And we've got Christian Norguard, 152 league games, 7 goals and counting. Championship promotion winner, also Denmark International and also, no surprise here, 2021-22 supportive player of the year and players player of the year and the current captain. Where would you like to start from here?
00:03:55
officialgspn
Did you vote for any of these players to win, support this player of the season?
00:04:00
Lydia
I remember, I think it was probably the first year that I actually voted and I remember voting no guard. So that was only a couple of years ago.
00:04:08
officialgspn
Wow, only a couple of years ago.
00:04:12
Lydia
I can't lie, I did not vote before then. But um okay, we we can start with Ryan Woods, mainly because I just actually like remember seeing him. I don't know if the ginger hair was like helpful in terms of memory but I think he was obviously quite like a fiery character and player and yeah I think i from what I remember he was quite like a ah stable player in the team.
00:04:45
officialgspn
Yeah I think he didn't live up to how good he was at Brentford as soon as he left really and he ended up dropping down.
00:04:52
Lydia
yeah
00:04:53
officialgspn
I don't know if he's still playing but he ended up dropping down at one point to league one. Yeah he looked very he was very comfortable on the ball very good on the ball ah kind of a bit like Jenson maybe obviously a few years before Jenson so not not quite as good but
00:05:00
Lydia
who Yeah.
00:05:08
officialgspn
He had certain traits like that on the ball. I think i remember he scored one or two really good goals. He obviously didn't score many goals, so I think most of the goals he did score were quite good goals. um Yeah, and he was very, very good for Brampton. I feel like it's a bit disappointing, and he'll probably be it's a bit disappointed that he left and it didn't quite work out for him. I mean, talking about midfielders who were quite hard, I think the likes of Alan McCormack and Jonathan Douglas fit that.
00:05:36
officialgspn
um fit that description. I think McCormack especially was known for being quite hot headed at times and um being strong in the tackle. But I think every team needs a player like that. I think Jonathan Douglas also similar in many ways, even if they weren't maybe technically as good as the likes of Jensen. And obviously even Norgard now, who is probably our current version of that midfield would enforcer, but obviously you can tell he's got maybe be a bit more technical quality.
00:06:10
Lydia
Yeah, maybe a little bit more refined.
00:06:13
officialgspn
Yeah. um I kind of don't want to put Jensen and Norgard in this team.
00:06:19
Lydia
Yeah.
00:06:19
officialgspn
I kind of want to give someone else a chance, but I think one of them probably deserves it out of those two. Who would you say out of Jensen and Norgard?
00:06:27
Lydia
Um, I'd say Norguard.
00:06:29
officialgspn
Yeah, I would say Norgard too. I think he's a captain. I think he has more of an influence on the team.
00:06:33
Lydia
Yeah.
00:06:35
officialgspn
I think when he's missing, you notice it more, especially at the moment, because I think Damsguard is covering quite well for Jenson. I think Jenson at times has been inconsistent. I think he can be really good, but I don't think he's necessarily always on it.
00:06:45
Lydia
Yeah,
00:06:48
Lydia
yeah I definitely say he's not as consistent as Norguard, so that's why I put Norguard above.
00:06:49
officialgspn
I think.
00:06:53
officialgspn
Yeah, and I think Norgas is a bit more invaluable to us in terms of obviously he's a captain as well. And I think in that position, he, you know, you you can tell when we miss him. um and I think we're just so much better with him and the team. So I think he deserves to be one of the midfielders. I think this is one of the closest categories in terms of who we choose as a second midfielder. And I may be inclined to go with the one who's played the most game games, which is Diego Raga. He's played 210 league games for Brentford. I think he could do a bit of everything. I think he could
00:07:31
officialgspn
be quite strong in the tackle and he could be more of that defensive midfielder. But I think also he did have a bit of silkiness about him, which is quite odd for a player of his height. You know, he was very tall, quite skinny, but he did have, you know, he did have a few tricks in his locker and I think he was also very popular in the time he was at Brentford. So I'd maybe be go with him as a second midfielder. Do you have any objections to that?
00:07:59
Lydia
Uh, no massive objections. I think, yeah, maybe The fact that he played so many games, he deserves a place, who knows?
00:08:11
officialgspn
Yeah, I think it's close. I think someone like Jonathan Douglas could have got into, I think, McCormack, very popular, but he didn't play as much as I thought he played, actually. I thought he would have played more league games for us than that. um And again, even even someone like Marcus Bean, it was a long time ago, but at the time,
00:08:31
officialgspn
he was also an extremely popular player, but I just think out of those sort of players from that similar era, I think Diego Aga probably maybe had the most technical quality. um So I think but he deserves a place in the team.
00:08:46
officialgspn
This gets harder, by the way, today, because I think this next category is pretty hard.
00:08:47
Lydia
Yeah.
00:08:50
officialgspn
and At right wing, there's only four that I've put down, but they're all extremely popular in their own way.
00:09:00
Lydia
what
00:09:00
officialgspn
So we've got Sam Saunders, who was involved in 170 league games, scoring 26 goals over seven and a half years. He was a league one promotion winner and obviously known for his free kicks and that specific one where he fell over and then put it in the top corner.
00:09:18
officialgspn
and He's currently still involved with Brentford and in the B team setup. Then we've got Jota, who played 69 league games and scored 23 goals. He was a championship playoff semi-finalist, also known for his last minute winners, particularly against Fulham. Next up, we've got Sergio Carlos, 225 league games, 33 goals over two spells at Brantford. Obviously, he initially joined on loan and went to Norwich for a short period in between.
00:09:51
officialgspn
He was a championship promotion winner, our first goal scorer in the Premier League and still the record appearance maker for Brentford for a player born outside of the British Isles. And finally, in this category, we have Brian and Bummo, 191 league games, 51 goals and counting, obviously a championship promotion winner and arguably our best player at the moment.
00:10:14
officialgspn
So that is some lists.
00:10:14
Lydia
Yeah.
00:10:16
officialgspn
Where do you like to start?
00:10:18
Lydia
Okay. I say we start at the beginning, we can start at some, Sam Saunders. I think the fact that he's still involved in the team and has I remember like quite a few times him coming back, um being interviewed at halftime, things like that. I think definitely one for the Brentford history books, not necessarily the best in terms of like quality, but there's something to be said for him sticking around and investing in like the Brentford project.
00:10:55
officialgspn
Yeah, I think he's he's kind of like an old school winger, a bit like David Beckham, like that's who he'd be compared to if he got to the very top. Because obviously he was a right winger who's right footed and obviously a lot of the time now people like Abumu are obviously left footed and they cut inside. He was all about crosses and you know free kicks and he wasn't the quickest.
00:11:18
officialgspn
and He was also in and out of the team. Some managers didn't fancy him and some managers obviously obviously brought him back in the side.
00:11:25
Lydia
Yeah.
00:11:25
officialgspn
I think also, I think this is character as well. I think he was just very, very popular. um And I think just for longevity, he deserves to be on this list amongst his other right wingers.
00:11:35
Lydia
Mm hmm.
00:11:36
officialgspn
And I've got a theory about him and somebody else that I'm going to raise to you at the end.
00:11:38
Lydia
Okay.
00:11:44
officialgspn
What about Jota? I think he's one of my favorite players.
00:11:48
officialgspn
like I've ever seen, I think, I think just for the memories that he gives us in like, in certain games towards the end, just how exciting he was to watch. I actually thought he would have played more than 69 league games, actually.
00:11:48
Lydia
Yeah.
00:12:02
officialgspn
I know he went off on loan, um back to Spain in between um due to personal issues, but I thought he had played more than that, which is a shame.
00:12:13
Lydia
This is probably throwing up some weird statistics.
00:12:13
officialgspn
And
00:12:17
officialgspn
Yeah, yeah. um It's a shame.
00:12:21
Lydia
i I definitely agree, in terms of watching him play, always exciting, always entertaining, and but the energy and stuff like that, maybe that's more memorable.
00:12:39
officialgspn
Definitely lots of memories, I think maybe just because he maybe quite hasn't played as many games as I'd have hoped he did. um maybe considering who he's up against it would be hard to include him but he is a billionaire now and I think he's a billionaire now and Matthew Benham we know is trying to sell some kind of minority stake and I would absolutely love him to be that guy
00:12:50
Lydia
Yeah.
00:12:57
Lydia
Did he like... Yeah. That would be such a good... Wait, how did he make his brilliant? Was that like...
00:13:11
officialgspn
He's got some agricultural business that I think somebody like Saudi is using. So he's getting a lot of money from them. I think something like that.
00:13:23
Lydia
Let's hope he uses his money in the right way now.
00:13:26
officialgspn
Yeah, he was actually out again. You know, sometimes you bring guests at halftime.
00:13:29
Lydia
yeah
00:13:30
officialgspn
He was, he was there well last season. He was, like he was a guest at one of the games and I thought, you know, maybe he's going to make a big announcement and confirm that he's going to invest into Brentford, but it never happened.
00:13:41
Lydia
Done. Let's just hope he's listening to this and now he's got ideas.
00:13:44
officialgspn
yes yes yeah yeah you're so you're still love mate so you know what to do with your money.
00:13:54
officialgspn
Certainly Canos is another one who's quite popular I don't particularly like the way he left Brentford though I think I thought he had a bit of a sulk that he was often playing at right wing back and
00:14:02
Lydia
Yeah.
00:14:07
officialgspn
I think he almost kind of forced his way out in the end and I understand obviously he wanted to go back to Spain and obviously he wanted to play more football um but I think we were on the whole very good Tim over the years and I think we helped him grow and he helped us grow and I do think it's a bit of a shame how it ended. I know he divided opinion at times and perhaps he wasn't maybe quite good enough to play ahead of certain players who is behind such as in Bumo.
00:14:37
Lydia
Yeah.
00:14:38
officialgspn
um
00:14:39
Lydia
I think that obviously the way it ended, like all the stuff on Twitter, whatever, I remember his like family getting involved. It was all just a bit messy. It was a bit of a salty taste in the mouth.
00:14:52
Lydia
But I do think that it was so iconic that he was the one that scored our first goal in the pram. I like that that happened.
00:14:58
officialgspn
Yeah. I think we've definitely got a member of what he's done for us. um and obviously he's been a big part of our history and obviously at certain stages of his Brentford career, he's been extremely popular.
00:15:11
Lydia
Yeah.
00:15:11
officialgspn
I think around the time we left, do you remember when he came into training, like wearing his t-shirt, which said like, please please let me go or something like that?
00:15:19
Lydia
Yeah. I remember seeing that on Twitter everywhere. I was like, come on, mate, this is like ridiculous behaviour.
00:15:26
officialgspn
Yeah, that was a bit cringe, that. The last person on this list is Brian and Bumo and I think especially given how he's going this season, he could end up being one of our best players ever.
00:15:37
Lydia
Yeah.
00:15:41
officialgspn
I think um i think he's just getting better and better to this day. And therefore I feel like he probably needs to win this.
00:15:51
Lydia
I think definitely we've obviously all seen his improvement over the seasons you know from like never being able to finish like okay I say never but you know all those times he hit the bar stuff like that and now to the point where everyone at work seems to have him in their fantasy teams so you must be doing something pretty good I feel like he's definitely obviously wants the success you can tell he's always like He's someone with that works hard, like both on and off the pitch.
00:16:24
Lydia
And I think that he just seems like a class guy and that he seems like someone good to have on the training ground.
00:16:31
officialgspn
Yeah I think he's definitely stepped up as our main man since Ivan Tony left.
00:16:34
Lydia
Yeah.
00:16:35
officialgspn
I think the Premier League recently did like a poll of best players so far this season and it was all City and Arsenal and Liverpool and I think they had Duran from Villa as well and then they had Brian and Buma on there.
00:16:49
Lydia
Yeah.
00:16:49
officialgspn
So I think he's definitely playing at a level which is probably above where we're at at the moment and I do worry that maybe this will be his last season if he carries on as he's going but I think we just got to enjoy him while he's still here um and obviously his goal record this season so far is amazing and if he can stay injury free I'm excited to see what he can do and that
00:17:05
Lydia
Yeah.
00:17:13
Lydia
Yeah, I think because of that, and because of the way he's like, visibly improved, he'd be my pick from this list.
00:17:21
officialgspn
Yeah, I think he's got to be and because so can also 225 league games is our record appearance maker ever for a playable and outside of the British Isles. Brian Abuma isn't far behind that he's on 191 at the moment.
00:17:34
officialgspn
So there's also a chance he could break that record too. um After the break, then I would have loved to include a jotted by the way, but I just thought he had played more games than that.
00:17:44
officialgspn
But he's he i he's still one of the best players I've ever seen play for Brentford and I stand by that he can be the owner of our
00:17:51
Lydia
Yeah, when he, like, had just his money with his owner.
00:17:52
officialgspn
mythical team. yeah
00:17:58
officialgspn
um After the break we'll be completing the side with a left winger attacking Mithilda and a striker.
00:19:16
officialgspn
Hello and welcome to part two then. So we're on to left wingers. Again, I've only got four and one of these players appears in two categories because I couldn't decide where to put him. So we've got Miles Weston, who is, who played 108 league games at Brentford, scored 12 goals and had three years of quite strong service in league one. Then we've got Saeed Ben-Rama.
00:19:45
officialgspn
83 league games, 27 goals, fans player of the year 2019-20 and in the championship team of the season in the same year. Of course, he was also a championship playoff finalist the year we lost in the final to Fulham. And then we've got, this is the one that's on this list and another list that we'll come to you later. Ollie Watkins, 132 league games, 45 goals. Obviously he was a left winger. We converted him to a striker.
00:20:12
officialgspn
just over halfway through his time at Brentford, and he was also a championship playoff finalist. And also on this list, who could also perhaps be on another list too, but he's not on on this occasion, is Johan Wisser, 106 league games, 29 goals. He was our top scorer last season, and obviously he is a full international. Where would you like to start then on this list of left-wingers?
00:20:37
Lydia
I say start with Ben Romer. Obviously, a lot of goals. And I think that, yeah, I think is he at Leon now?
00:20:47
officialgspn
Yeah, he left West Ham.
00:20:49
officialgspn
Yep.
00:20:49
Lydia
Yeah, he left first time.
00:20:50
Lydia
I feel like since from the way he performed for us, I think it was kind of disappointing how his career in the prem ended, to be honest.
00:21:01
Lydia
um But I do think he was definitely a touch of quality at the time and I think that he obviously produced lots of goals for us and was exciting to watch.
00:21:16
officialgspn
Yeah, I'm glad things turned out the way they did. But if we had beaten for them and went up a year earlier, obviously we would have missed the Premier League season because it would have been behind closed doors. But it would have been very interesting to see how we did with that team of Ben Rama and obviously Watkins as well.
00:21:30
Lydia
yeah
00:21:32
officialgspn
um Because obviously Watkins, especially, we can see how well he's doing now. And I think Ben Rama arguably would have done better if he stayed at Brentford than went to West Ham.
00:21:43
officialgspn
I thought, the way we played suited him, I thought, you know, he he was, so he was so good for us.
00:21:46
Lydia
Yeah.
00:21:49
officialgspn
And then it was taken out of him a bit at West Ham. I think David Moyes perhaps wasn't the best manager for him.
00:21:57
Lydia
Yeah.
00:21:57
officialgspn
um There was flashes, but he he never quite hit it off, especially towards West Ham fans. But I think, yeah, I think Ben Rama and Jotun might be my favorite too, just previous Brentford players to watch.
00:22:09
officialgspn
um
00:22:09
Lydia
to watch he was definitely like so much energy and the way he was up front as well just like you could see he wanted the goals he was always willing to I don't know just the way he played was like entertaining
00:22:27
officialgspn
Yeah. and ever and And since he's come back and played against us over the years, I think he's always been respectful. I think he always has a certain love towards a club. um Obviously there was an incident with Watkins last season, which has to be taken into consideration, I'm afraid.
00:22:40
Lydia
Yeah.
00:22:43
officialgspn
um So I think for me, Ben Rama, probably wins it. I think Miles Weston was quick and exciting back in the day, but not in the same way.
00:22:55
officialgspn
I don't think he lit our team up in the same way that Ben Rama lit our team up at the time he was there. And with Whissa, I actually prefer Whissa up front, but we've got so many strikers in the last 15 years that I couldn't fit him in the list for up front.
00:23:11
officialgspn
But I think Whissa's goal record is very good, and I think He has got the potential to be considered more at the top of this list.
00:23:11
Lydia
yeah
00:23:23
officialgspn
If he stays for another few years and continues to score at the rate he's been scoring, um if he gets more regular starts as well in the side, I think he's ah he he has real potential to be a really good goal scorer.
00:23:35
Lydia
Yeah.
00:23:37
officialgspn
But obviously I think we just wanted to see a bit more from him before he breaks into this side in particular.
00:23:39
Lydia
yeah
00:23:42
officialgspn
and So out of Ben Rama and Watkins, who who would you go with just out of interest?
00:23:47
Lydia
I can't lie, Watkins, I can't think of specific um like instances, but just some of the things he's said or done since leaving, I don't think he should be on the list.
00:23:49
officialgspn
i would go be armity So we haven't disagreed on much He wasn't as magic either or as exciting to watch and I think Watkins...
00:24:11
Lydia
yeah
00:24:13
officialgspn
I don't think he's done anything wrong apart from that game last season where he did that stupid celebration which I think he looking back on now he must regret because even if there was one guy in the crowd giving him abuse he got a fairly good reception from everybody else and he's got to be able to recognize that and recognize how that would look to others if he's just singling out one guy after he's a scored and and obviously the reaction he got after that he probably led him to regret it quite quickly ah but yeah
00:24:18
Lydia
Yeah.
00:24:29
Lydia
yeah
00:24:44
Lydia
Yeah.
00:24:45
officialgspn
Ben Rama gets in the team at left wing, particularly left wing, because I think perhaps Watkins is better up front anyway. um And he may well appear again in that list for st strikers than we have.
00:24:55
Lydia
I'm going to have to vote.
00:24:58
officialgspn
Let's move on then to a central attacking midfielder. So this is whoever's going to be playing just behind the striker. So we've got Harry Forrester.
00:25:09
officialgspn
He played 55 league games and scored eight goals, only eight goals over two seasons. I thought he had scored more than that. um He's most notably remember for scoring at Chelsea in the FA Cup draw we had at Griffin Park. And he actually signed for Doncaster a few weeks after that heartbreak game where Doncaster got promoted instead of us. and Then we've got Alan Church. He played 130 league games, scoring 25 goals. He was a league one promotion winner.
00:25:41
officialgspn
scoring the penalty against Preston to earn promotion and he was also a Championship playoff finalist the following season. He won the Players and Supporters Player of the Year in 2015-2016 and he was in the Championship team of the season just before he picked up that really bad injury which I think set him back and he never really recovered from when he came back after that injury. Next up we have Alex Pritchard 45 league appearances 12 goals in the Championship playoff semi-final season He was the player player players player of the year that season and also was in the championship team in the season. Then we've got Romain Sawyers, 127 league game, six goals. He was the 2017-18 players player of the year and he was made club captain by Thomas Frank towards the end of his time at Brentford. I think I remember he him as being someone who divided opinion a little bit.
00:26:36
officialgspn
Then we've got, and I just put this name in there because of his name, I think, because I don't for one second think he's going to win this. We've got Christian Erickson. He only made 11 appearances for Brentford School in one goal, but he probably was our most high profile and still our most high profile ever player that we've signed.
00:26:55
Lydia
Yeah.
00:26:55
officialgspn
um Only Kevin De Bruyne at Anno de Garde created more Premier League chances during, than him during that period. And then we've got Josh De Silva, who's on 130, seven league appearances, 20 goals and hopefully still counting and obviously he's also a championship and promotion winner. Where do you like to start on the Leicester players?
00:27:15
Lydia
I'd say start Alan Judge. I remember obviously he had to quite a few like insane goals from like long ranges. And I think he was definitely someone with the energy. And I think he was just like, again, someone good to watch. He was always the driving runs and someone with like the desire to get the ball.
00:27:42
Lydia
Uh, and then obviously I think it was it that he broke his leg. That was obviously ah start the bit of a struggle for him.
00:27:46
officialgspn
Yeah.
00:27:51
Lydia
But I think for what he did in the, you know, in promotion to the championship. And then I think he obviously he was there at the start of our rise to where we are now.
00:28:05
Lydia
So I think he's maybe a possibility for the list.
00:28:09
officialgspn
Yeah, I think before his injury, he was so good. I think when we first signed him in league one, he was far too good for league one.
00:28:13
Lydia
ye
00:28:17
Lydia
Yeah.
00:28:17
officialgspn
um You could tell he was at least a championship player. And then there were times in that championship era where he could have played in the premiership, I think. I think him, the likes of him, Ben Rama, Jota, those kind of players, I think, and even Pritchard that season, that playoff semi-final season, I think could have played in the Premier League and it is such a shame with him that he was never quite the same player after that injury.
00:28:42
officialgspn
but i think He was brilliant. Obviously he scored the goal to send us up in league one, you know, to finally end all those years of not even being in the championship. And after his injury, all I really remember is that free kick against Arsenal, which I think might've been his final goal for the club.
00:29:00
officialgspn
um But yeah, I think just his longevity as well. He's played the most games out of anybody on this, this apart from De Silva.
00:29:07
Lydia
Mm hmm.
00:29:12
officialgspn
and So I think he needs to be considered. I think Pritchard, how did he not end up playing in the Premier League or doing much better than he did that season for us in the rest of his career? I don't know, because he was really young then. And obviously I think he's still he's still knocking around somewhere now. I think he might be in Turkey now, but obviously he never quite hit those heights again until maybe he joined Sunderland in the last few years.
00:29:41
officialgspn
And if anything, had a similar season to what he did for Brentford. And I think it's a real shame that he never pushed on because at the time I would have been certain that he'd gone to the play in the Premier League given his age at the time and how well he did that season for us.
00:29:52
Lydia
yeah Yeah, I think I just remember obviously he divided opinion.
00:29:58
officialgspn
Who else should we talk about? Do you want to talk about Sawyer's?
00:30:08
officialgspn
Which side were you on?
00:30:09
Lydia
I think to be fair, it was probably because my dad quite liked him, so I quite liked him because of that. And I think that he was obviously like player of the year from, I think it was like players player of the year. So I think to get that, you obviously must have like a decent attitude in the training ground and stuff like that. So I think, yeah, maybe that's, I'm more on the positive side. I don't know how you feel about him.
00:30:40
officialgspn
yeah I like him too. I think he was that creative force again. He was, he's fairly similar, I guess, to someone like Jensen today.
00:30:49
Lydia
Yeah.
00:30:49
officialgspn
And I think some players like that, some players out that have a running style where it looks like they're not that bothered, but i think it's just how he like moves and runs.
00:30:59
Lydia
Yeah.
00:31:00
officialgspn
And it's not that he doesn't care. It's not that he's not bothered. It's not that he's not trying. It's none of those things. I think he is doing all those things, which is why the players recognise him for what he does.
00:31:11
Lydia
yeah
00:31:13
officialgspn
And why Thomas Frank made him captain towards the end of his time. I think people just sometimes don't see that, especially when we're struggling.
00:31:20
Lydia
Yeah.
00:31:20
officialgspn
um But yeah, I think he's definitely worthy to be part of this conversation. um We don't need to really talk about Ericsson.
00:31:27
Lydia
Definitely.
00:31:29
officialgspn
I just put him on the list because of who he is. um Obviously he wasn't there, Brentford for long enough, I don't think, to be even remotely considered.
00:31:35
Lydia
I think at the time, being a fan, going into school and being like, oh my God, blah, blah, blah, that was really exciting. And obviously watching him as well and those moments of like insane quality. Obviously he helped us a lot um when he was there, but yeah, that's all you can really say.
00:31:54
officialgspn
yeah if he had stayed and was still perhaps with Brentford now maybe we'd have be having a different conversation but um obviously hopefully we'll be beating him at Old Trafford um next week so just to say thank you for for your time at Brentford Christian.
00:31:59
Lydia
Yeah.
00:32:06
Lydia
Yeah.
00:32:09
Lydia
Because to be fair, the way he left, that also irritated me, but nevermind.
00:32:09
officialgspn
ah
00:32:14
Lydia
That's a conversation for another time.
00:32:16
officialgspn
Yeah, Joshua Silva, also another very popular player. I feel so bad for him and his injuries in recent years.
00:32:21
Lydia
Yeah.
00:32:22
officialgspn
But despite that, he still played the most games on this entire list out of all the attacking with filters. And I think on his day, he can be very, very good. He obviously has that trademark goal where he cuts in on his left and curls it into the corner.
00:32:37
Lydia
Mm hmm.
00:32:38
officialgspn
I just think if it was't if it hadn't been so stop, start for him over the years, then he may have moved on from Brentford firstly and maybe playing for a club you know in the top six. But at the very least he'd be you know consistently in our starting 11, I think. And I think it's just a shame that you know so far it's been so stop-start and I really hope that he can recover and you know just have a period where he stays fit.
00:33:09
Lydia
Yeah, I think just because of, like you mentioned, the stop start nature of his playing career at Renford probably can't make it to our team.
00:33:19
officialgspn
No, he's played a lot of games, but I think Alan Charles would probably have a bit more memories of him and yeah just special moments from him. And I think he was just so good compared to the team we had at the time. I think he was arguably our best player, at least for a lot of the time that he was at Brentford. So lets let's go with him. Last player in our team. And again, I think this is a really tough one.
00:33:41
Lydia
Yeah.
00:33:42
officialgspn
So we have got Charlie McDonald, 111 league games, 40 goals. He was a league two winner and scored a league goal every 2.7 games at Brentford. Then we've got Clayton Donaldson, 136 league games, 46 goals. He was a player of the year in 2012, 13.
00:33:59
officialgspn
and a league one promotion winner. Then we've got Neil Morphey, 114 league games and 43 goals over two spells. He was a supporters and players player of the year in 2018-19. Then we've got Ollie Watkins, who appears again. Of course, he got 45 gold in 132 league games. And then finally, we've got Ivan Tony, 67 goals in 128 league games, which include a breaking the championship goal scoring record,
00:34:29
officialgspn
And of course he was a promotion winner, score of our first Premier League hat-trick, possibly our only two Premier League hat-tricks, because I think he scored more than one hat-trick. I don't remember if anyone else has. um He was a players player of the year in 22-23 after he had 20 Premier League goals that season, which I think only Harry Kane and Erling Harland had scored more that season. So obviously the records of him are there to you know, admire.
00:35:00
Lydia
Yeah.
00:35:01
officialgspn
um But is there anyone else on this list that you want to talk about first?
00:35:05
Lydia
I'd say let's talk about Morphe just because of his antics on and off the pitch. I think just seeing all the stuffy tweets just remains funny to me. ah So he deserves a shout out for off the pitch entertainment value. And I think that ah he obviously he struggled at Everton and when he came back Obviously, that I think that showed how the team meant a lot to him. I don't think he was as good as he had been in his prime, but I think for his, I don't know, just entertainment of value, he deserves points.
00:35:50
officialgspn
Yeah, I think it was a different level. I think obviously the first in it, we were in the championship and he could score goals at that level.
00:35:52
Lydia
Yeah.
00:35:56
officialgspn
But I think maybe if you look at his profile, he's not particularly big and strong. He's not particularly fast. He doesn't have that standout attribute, which makes you think, Oh yeah, he can be a brilliant striker.
00:36:09
officialgspn
I actually think he probably did better than I thought he was going to do last season. And he clearly has an affinity to the club. He's clearly very, very popular. I think he would have loved to stay as well.
00:36:20
Lydia
Yeah.
00:36:20
officialgspn
and I think the fans can feel that and resonate that he's someone you'd hate to play against but you know you really love on your team and I think he definitely deserves a shout out but I do i do agree that compared to who he's up against he's in a position on the pitch whereas I feel like when we were talking about right backs for example we didn't have that many but these attacking positions we've had a lot of brilliant players over the years and I feel like he's just
00:36:23
Lydia
Mm hmm.
00:36:32
Lydia
yeah
00:36:46
officialgspn
maybe going to fall into the background slightly of some of these others we we want to talk about. um let me Let me just go through some of the older ones. So Charlie McDonald, he was a typical like lower lower division finisher.
00:37:01
officialgspn
He was like the lower division Harry Kane, except that that's probably a really bad comparison.
00:37:06
Lydia
Yeah.
00:37:07
officialgspn
Low division Erling Harland, except that he looked nothing like Erling Harland. He was quite small, not particularly strong, but all he was was a goal scorer and he was very good at scoring goals. um I think he's maybe the type of player who wouldn't have quite worked out in the physicality of the higher divisions, but for where we were at the time, I thought, you know, he was such a valuable player to us at the time. um Clayton Donaldson, it's a shame he didn't stay on for the championship.
00:37:37
officialgspn
We would have loved to keep him. I think we tried to offer him a contract. I think he decided they to go to Birmingham at the time. Again, maybe we he'd be considered more on this list if he did stay into the championship. Obviously in league one, he was a very, very good striker over several seasons. And again, you know, someone that really carried us through that period of time. Ollie Watkins, you've already spoken about, so I don't think we need to do that too much. And then we're left with Ivan Tony, where I think on the pitch, you can't deny him.
00:38:08
officialgspn
And he's done it at the highest level in the Premier League and he's probably one of our best ever players.
00:38:10
Lydia
Yeah.
00:38:14
officialgspn
But obviously there are certain issues off the pitch. and Obviously we've done a whole podcast on him um not too long ago, but do you think he should still win this or have you got someone else in mind?
00:38:18
Lydia
Yeah.
00:38:26
Lydia
I think he should still win this. I know we've talked about the controversies off the pitch, but I think the fact that he came back to watch, can't remember what game it was, but after the news of him leaving, like finally, when he was off to Saudi, I think that he obviously did express his like thanks to the team and to the fans afterwards. And obviously he was in a difficult position with the band, things like that.
00:38:56
Lydia
And I think the way he carried himself after that and showing appreciation to the team and he's like star quality. I don't know. you Sometimes you need to strike off a bit of like tabloid, I don't know, like interest. Maybe that's how we know we've made it, properly made it in the prem. I think that you will remain a Brentford icon. And so I think undoubtedly he should be in the team.
00:39:21
officialgspn
Yes, I am inclined to agree. I think Ollie Watkins also has his off pitch stuff, so that doesn't help him. um So, yeah, I'm inclined to agree with Ivan Tony. So just then, before we recap our entire team, including our sessions from last week, I've got a proposition for you.
00:39:40
officialgspn
You know, at right back, we had Kevin O'Connor and we also kind of wanted to include Dalsgard for what he did, obviously in the championship era, and obviously he was quite an influential player in the team.
00:39:43
Lydia
Yeah.
00:39:51
officialgspn
So how about we have Thomas Frank as manager, Jota as owner because you know money and O'Connor and Saunders as like Thomas Frank's coaches and then Dowsgar can have have his place back at right back.
00:39:57
Lydia
Yes, with his billions, that makes sense.
00:40:07
Lydia
Okay, I see the idea, I see the vision.
00:40:12
Lydia
Okay, you know what? Because wait, O'Connor is still involved in the team, isn't he?
00:40:17
officialgspn
Yeah he's a first team coach and Saunders is a B team coach but for the purposes of our
00:40:18
Lydia
Anyway, you know, O'Connor is involved in
00:40:22
officialgspn
Ultimate 11, we can have them both helping out Thomas Frank.
00:40:23
Lydia
the team. They'll be, yeah.
00:40:27
Lydia
You know, I think that with Yutta is the owner, it works out beautifully, to be honest.
00:40:30
officialgspn
Yeah, then we fit in most players we want to fit in, you know.
00:40:33
Lydia
yeah and Can we have more pay as social media manager, please?
00:40:34
officialgspn
Sorry, Ollie Watkins, you couldn't find the space for you.
00:40:38
officialgspn
Okay, we can do, we can do.
00:40:41
Lydia
ah we funny
00:40:43
officialgspn
So then just to recap then, in that case we've got manager is Thomas Frank, The first team coaches are Kevin O'Connor and Sam Saunders. The owner is Jota. Neil Morphey is the social media manager. And then going on to their team, we've got David Rarian goal. We've got Henrik Dalsgaard at right back. We've got Pontus Janssen and Ethan Pinnock at centre back. Rico Henry at left back. And then moving on to our picks today, I believe in central midfield, we've got Christian Norgard and Tumari Diagaraga. On the right, we've got Brian Ambumo.
00:41:17
officialgspn
um On the left, we've got Saeed Ben-Rama. In the middle, we've got Alan Judge. And up front, we've got Ivan Tony. I think we've done a pretty good job on that.
00:41:28
Lydia
Yeah.
00:41:29
officialgspn
So that would be a good place to stop and end this podcast. Thank you for listening to the Daily Brentford Podcast. We hope you've enjoyed today's episode. And once again, we would be extremely grateful for your support as this will enable us to get bigger and better moving forwards.
00:41:43
officialgspn
Daily Brentford can be found on X, Instagram and TikTok under the handle at GSPN Brentford. We'll be back tomorrow for our crossover episode with the team at Daily Manchester United to start to preview our game at the weekend. Until then, from myself and Lydia, thank you for being with us.