Analysis: An in-depth look at Brentford’s start to the Premier League season | OneFootball

The international break will allow Brentford head coach Keith Andrews to reflect on his side's start to the 2025/26 season and take stock of the Bees' opening four games, the disappointment of defeats to Nottingham Forest and Sunderland tempered by wins over Aston Villa and Bournemouth.

In his post-match comments to date, Andrews has highlighted key areas in which his side can improve - from defending set-pieces more effectively to being smarter with the ball when in possession - but he has also praised the resolve and character shown by his squad, as he looks to put his stamp on this Brentford team.

The resilience and determination on show during both the Premier League victory over Villa and Carabao Cup win over the Cherries provided compelling evidence that Brentford's players are fully behind their new head coach - and the Bees currently rank highly across a number of defensive stats in the top flight.

Moreover, the fact that the Bees (40 per cent) have played a higher percentage of their passes forward than any other team in the division supports the theory that Andrews wants his side to play on the front foot.

It's early days and Brentford, collectively and individually, will look to kick on after the current break. What is clear, however, is that a number of Bees players have hit the ground running this term - none more so than their target man Thiago.

As goal-scoring burdens go, Thiago picked up a weighty responsibility this summer given that Bryan Mbeumo and Yoane Wissa were destined to leave west London.

A meniscus injury and subsequent knee infection saw fitness abandon the former Club Brugge striker during a torrid first season in TW8.

This season, the pressure to fill the boots of not one but two prolific forwards was heightened by Thiago’s last competitive goal dating back to a Europa Conference League semi-final against Fiorentina in May 2024.

It is to Thiago's immense credit, therefore, that he has quickly found his goalscoring boots this season and struck three times in four games - a cool penalty, a clinical right-footed finish and most recently a towering header showcasing the 24-year-old's ability to score different types of goals.

In addition to hitting his primary KPI, the Brazilian's strength in the air is a bonus at both ends of the pitch; only two players (Liverpool's Virgil van Dijk and Manchester United's Mathijs de Ligt, both 17) have won more aerial duels this season than Thiago (14).

Thiago may feel like a new signing, but an actual new arrival this summer has also made a very positive impression during Brentford's early skirmishes this season.

A match-winning goal on his debut against Aston Villa helped Dango Ouattara make a fairytale start to life as a Bees player, and the Burkina Faso forward's threat was again on show last weekend at Stadium of Light where he broke free and slotted home… only for the goal to be ruled out for a marginal offside.

He may have only made two Premier League starts for the Bees, but the early signs are that Ouattara is an all-action performer with the pace and direct running style to seriously trouble defenders.

The fact all three of his shots this season have been on target can only be a good sign, and his numbers suggest he will win his fair share of attacking free-kicks in dangerous areas.

With Thiago as a target, Ouattara and Kevin Schade as ready outlets, and new loan signing Reiss Nelson still to add into the mix, playmaker Mikkel Damsgaard looks to have an exciting array of options ahead of him - and the Dane already tops the charts for the Bees for key passes and crosses this term, despite missing the opening day defeat to Forest.

Up front, Thiago and Ouattara have been the main men and Brentford’s only Premier League goal-scorers, but Nathan Collins and Sepp van den Berg deserve honourable mentions at the back.

Collins took the armband from the outgoing Christian Nørgaard this summer, and the Irishman looks to be thriving with the added responsibility.

One of the Premier League’s top-performing centre-backs across a range of stats last season, Collins was at the heart of the two outstanding defensive displays and back-to-back clean sheets against Villa and Bournemouth.

Collins (7.7 clearances-per-game) and van den Berg (9.7) are the key reason the Bees rank in the top three Premier League teams for clearances made this season - alongside Liverpool and Bournemouth - and the latter also ranks in the top 10 players in the division for shots blocked and aerials won at this early stage.

Fresh from a lovely assist against Sunderland last weekend, Frank Onyeka has forced his way into contention for a starting berth in Brentford’s midfield and Yehor Yarmoliuk has also illustrated his talents by winning possession for the Bees on 17 occasions already this season (only six players in the Premier League have out-performed the Ukrainian in this regard).

Andrews and his staff now have space to analyse what Brentford have done well and where they need to improve, with a view to taking points off second-placed Chelsea when the Premier League resumes a week on Saturday.