Why Brentford risk becoming victims of their own efficiency as key issue emerges | OneFootball

Bees look disjointed in attack as Keith Andrews attempts to build on Thomas Frank’s foundations

Back-to-back games against Manchester United and Manchester City have exposed the paradox that could come to define Brentford’s season.

With four goals from just five shots on target, Igor Thiago is among the sharpest shooters in the Premier League, as he proved with a 20-minute brace against United.

The Brazilian’s game is based around efficiency, and he is firmly in the mould of Brentford strikers that have gone before him in that regard - Yoane Wissa had the fifth-best conversion rate in the Premier League last season.

However, as evidenced by his performance against Manchester City last weekend, that can also cause issues. If Brentford can’t get the ball into Thiago, then he cuts an isolated figure up top despite his bruising presence.

Thiago had 18 touches in 68 minutes, with just one inside the penalty area, against Pep Guardiola’s side, and struggled to link play, completing just six of his 11 attempted passes.

When Brentford needed someone to relieve pressure on their backline and get them up the pitch, Thiago, who is still adjusting to Brentford’s team after an injury-hit first season in England, was unable to act as a focal point.

There is seemingly too much pressure on him to make the most of every touch he takes with the ball.

There is too much pressure on Igor Thiago to make the most of every touch

Part of what made Brentford’s attack so impressive last year was their ability to wait for the perfect opening before taking a shot. They had the shortest average shot distance at 13.6metres from goal.

That patience is fundamental to how Brentford work, but they are a new-look attack under Keith Andrews.

Kevin Schade, despite his recent call-up to the German national team, has scored just once this season, while club-record signing Dango Ouattara has been in and out of the side as Andrews has opted for a three-man defence when facing ‘Big Six’ clubs.

Schade and Ouattara will be central to taking some of the scoring burden off Thiago but have not quite found their rhythm.

Last season, Schade was afforded a slow start to the campaign because of the understanding and experience that Wissa and Bryan Mbeumo had built over the years.

This year, though, with Wissa and Mbeumo both having left the club, the onus is on Schade to step up and provide support for Thiago.

Against Manchester United, Schade used his pace to collect Thiago’s knockdown, burst past Harry Maguire and cross the ball for his team-mate to follow in.

After the game, Andrews praised Thiago for bringing balance to Brentford’s attack, allowing Schade and Ouattara to play off him.

“He gives us that base to be able to bring players into play,” Andrews said.

“If teams press us effectively and aggressively, we know we can miss that, play to Thiago, and players can join in off the back of it, and with Dango and Kev, we've got real pace to get in behind teams.”

That goal was the perfect illustration of what Andrews wants from his attackers, with Thiago providing a presence before following his pass and Schade in support, knitting the play together with his explosiveness in the final third.

The problem Andrews has is that the passage of play he talks so highly of is not something Brentford have been able to replicate across the early months of the season.

Finding his feet: It has been a slow start to life at Brentford for record signing Dango Ouattara

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Schade, Thiago and Ouattara have not played together enough to build that understanding, and at the moment it’s leaving Thiago isolated.

Jordan Henderson’s sweeping long passes have provided a useful outlet for Brentford, setting up goals for Schade and Thiago, but it’s clear that they need more variety in their build-up play, with teams finding it too easy to stifle them in attack.

Andrews is trying to carry on the work done by his predecessor, Thomas Frank, in building an attack that creates high-quality chances for forwards.

However, with a frontline that has played together only a handful of times, Brentford have inevitably looked disjointed and they risk becoming a victim of their own efficiency in what is a transitional season for the club.