Andrews on new contract: It's a privilege to be Brentford head coach | OneFootball

Brentford head coach Keith Andrews has spoken for the first time since signing a new contract, which will see him remain as Bees boss until 2032.

Andrews, who has guided the west Londoners to seventh in the Premier League this season, discussed his ambition to keep evolving the team, as well as continuing to build an authentic connection with the supporters.

“I’m very proud,” Andrews began. “It wasn’t long ago that I was signing my first contract so, to be sat here however many months later, that’s probably a good sign!

“It’s felt like it’s gone pretty quick, a lot has happened, but I’m just really proud to get that real vote of confidence from Matthew Benham, Phil Giles, Lee Dykes and Ben Ryan.

“Everyone knows that I’m pretty privileged to be head coach of this amazing club, so to do that for lots and lots more years will be nice.”

Andrews also discussed how he pictures the Bees growing under his leadership over the next six years of his contract.

“I just want to constantly evolve the team and evolve the individuals in the team,” he said. “I want to keep working on that on a daily basis. I want us to keep pushing each other really, really hard.

“Confidence is also such a big part of the game. If the players are in a confident place, you can play them to their highest levels - we’ve shown that pretty consistently.”

The 45-year-old added: “I just want to keep pushing every aspect of our game.

“I want us to be a team that entertains our fans, and one we can look at and feel immense pride in how they go about their business on a daily basis.

“In terms of style of play, I just want us to be relentless; I’ve said that pretty much from the start. We’ve grown and built that.

“I want us to be a horrible team to play against and, in the main, we are. But I also want us to be a team that enjoys playing football and enjoys being a team, not just individuals.”

Andrews continued: “My relationship with the fans has grown and grown. It always has to be very authentic; I was never going to force any emotions that weren’t real or genuine.

“I’ve certainly felt the support from day one, from anyone that I’ve met. The support has been really strong from the off.”

He revealed: “I did feel like I needed to earn my stripes.

“Naturally, I think there would have been a slight concern - if I were living in Dublin looking at Thomas Frank leaving and the set-piece coach taking over, I probably would have been a little bit worried too! So, I really understood it.

“I was always going to grasp the opportunity I was getting with both hands.

“I wanted to be very humble about it, work really, really hard, and basically just prove to myself - more than anyone - that I was capable of doing this job to a level it needed to be.”