Analysis: The added layers to Brentford's style of play this season | OneFootball

As winter draws to a close, there should be a spring in Brentford's step as they survey the remainder of the 2024/25 season - the Bees are currently 11th in the Premier League, closer to the European positions than the relegation zone.

Nine points shy of the mythical 40-point objective that ‘guarantees’ a team's top-flight status, Thomas Frank will no doubt be targeting a return from his side's next three games against opposition currently below the west Londoners in the table.

Alongside those short-term objectives, however, Frank will remain focused on his often-stated aim of "adding layers" to his Brentford side.

In their fourth successive season in the top flight, Brentford have garnered a reputation for their smart, data-led approach, both on and off the pitch, and the Bees' quest to continue evolving in what Frank has labelled a "brutal" division has been evident this term.

That said, it is important to note that the Dane makes no bones about the fact that adding layers relies first on foundations being in place.

"Let's remember what we're really good at, keep that, and then add layers," stated Frank in an interview back in 2023.

Before we explore the fresh layers Brentford have added during the current campaign, let's look at how the Bees have rediscovered some of their old strengths after a challenging, not to mention injury-plagued, 2023/24 season.

The obvious foundation underpinning Brentford's season to date has been their stunning home form.

Although the Bees slipped to a disappointing 2-0 defeat against London rivals Tottenham last time out at Gtech Community Stadium, Frank's side have won 23 of their 31 Premier League points to date on their own patch.

Only Arsenal (28), Liverpool (26) and Nottingham Forest (24) have picked up more points on home turf than Brentford, who have already surpassed the 22 points they won at the Gtech last season.

This record links directly to Brentford refinding their shooting boots this season. In fact, the Bees (29 goals) are currently the highest scorers at home in the Premier League.

Even in terms of total goals scored, only Liverpool, Arsenal, Manchester City, Tottenham and Chelsea have hit more than the west Londoners' 42 goals this season.

A renewed edge at the sharp end of Brentford's attack has coincided with a resurgence in two important areas: their shots on target (SoT) stats and their performance in relation to their Expected Goals (xG).

If you cycle back to the end of the 2022/23 season, when Brentford finished ninth in the table, their SoT percentage of 37 per cent was the best in the entire top flight.

Last season, however, with Ivan Toney suspended and their squad decimated by injuries, the Bees failed to make opposition keepers work to the same degree. Over the first half of that season, Brentford's SoT plunged below 30 per cent at times, although it did recover to a respectable 34 per cent.

This season, however, Brentford have re-established their credentials as the Premier League's sharpest shooters, with their focus on the creation of good quality shooting opportunities underlined by the fact they have hit the target with 42 per cent of their shots. What's more, no team in the division has scored a greater ratio of their shots than the Bees (0.14 goals per shot).

The disparity between last season and this one in terms of Brentford's Expected Goals is even more glaring.

Last term, the Bees numbered among the lowest performers, in xG terms, in the top flight. Projected to have scored 65.17 goals in 2023/24, Brentford's eventual total of 54 Premier League strikes fell 11.17 goals shy of their expected tally.

Fast forward to this season, however, and Frank's side have turned the xG chart on its head. One of only four teams to boast a positive xG differential at this stage, Brentford have hit 42 goals from an xG of 41.89 - which illustrates that the Bees have regained their ruthlessness in front of goal.

Brentford's cutting edge in attack is a good example of Frank's side strengthening their pre-existing foundations and there are similar trends in other areas (the Bees, for example, top the Premier League for aerials won again this season after a drop-off last term).

However, now it's time to focus on a few new layers the Bees have added this season - and we'll introduce a couple of star players to illustrate these.

Step forward, Mikkel Damsgaard.

Brentford's style over recent seasons has been gradually shifting to a hybrid approach that allies direct football - pressing high on the front foot - with a capacity to exert greater control on games, often through spells of possession in their own half.

Although this over-simplifies the tactics deployed by the Bees, their ability to control games and create chances is greatly enhanced by press-resistant players who can deliver killer passes - and the emergence of Damsgaard in Brentford's midfield has been a huge positive.

It is notable, in this context, that Damsgaard (eight) has already matched the most assists by a Brentford player in a Premier League season (he is tied with Bryan Mbeumo's tally in 2022/23) and his incisive passing has offered the Bees a weapon they had not possessed previously in the top flight.

Damsgaard has been exceptional to date this term and he has assisted more goals via through-balls (three) than any player in the top tier this season, while ranking 14th in the division for key passes (with 41).

There are plenty of other developments we could focus on to illustrate strings Brentford have added to their bow, but the evolution of the Bryan Mbeumo/Yoane Wissa strike partnership has to be mentioned.

Although the Bees were forced to shuffle their pack last season, Toney was their attacking spearhead in the club's first three seasons in the Premier League - but they now possess a formidable attacking duo for the first time.

With 25 Premier League goals between them, the combination is the only one in which both players have scored 10+ goals this season, and Mbeumo and Wissa's form individually and as a pairing has been sensational.

The pair have almost identical minutes-per-goal rates of 152 minutes (Wissa) and 154 minutes (Mbeumo), and their shot-on-target percentages are also sky-high; Mbeumo hitting the target with an impressive 51 per cent of his shots, Wissa doing the same with 46 per cent of his efforts.

The evolution of Brentford's prolific double act has been a joy to watch and central to one of the biggest developments made by the Bees this season: their prolific output from open play.

Level with champions Man City as the deadliest set-piece specialists in the Premier League in 2022/23, Brentford have now evolved to a point where only leaders Liverpool (47) and Pep Guardiola's side (41) have scored more goals from 'live' situations in the Premier League this season.

This free-flowing weapon in their armoury is an exciting development for Bees fans and Wissa and Mbeumo have contributed 19 of their 33 goals (58 per cent) from open play in 2024/25.

So, to finish, layers have certainly been added to Brentford's game this season, and with a raft of senior players still to return from injury and new signing Michael Kayode also to bed in, the rest of the campaign looks set to be an exciting one.