Brentford's Big Sale Round: What the Departing Stars Mean for Their Prospects

The 2024/25 Premier League season was one of surprises. The year of the underdogs, with Nottingham Forest qualifying for European football, Bournemouth amassing a record points haul under Andoni Iraola, and teams such as Brighton and Fulham impressing in the middle of the pack.

The gap that separates the top teams might be larger than ever. However, in the modern landscape of the English top-flight, these teams have a bigger chance than ever, building and strengthening their squads through the ‘Moneyball’ strategy.

‘Moneyball’ is centred around selling your top assets for large sums and then replacing them with cheaper and more unknown players, who are also often younger, placing a great emphasis on scouting.

🚨 EXCLUSIVE: Manchester United make improved bid to sign Bryan Mbeumo from Brentford. New offer for 26yo forward worth £65m fixed + £5m add-ons. #MUFC awaiting #BrentfordFC response as they work to close deal for Cameroon int’l & top target @TheAthleticFC https://t.co/lStJ9k1fch

— David Ornstein (@David_Ornstein) July 17, 2025

One club that have perfected that in recent times has been Brentford, a club who are already punching above their weight in the Premier League, but the Bees have shown that they are a fantastic addition to the top-flight.

From replacing Said Benrahma and Ollie Watkins in the Championship, to flipping Ivan Toney to Kevin Schade in the Premier League. Brentford always make change seem effortless.

However, this summer has seen an extraordinary level of change at the G-Tec Community Stadium, with Thomas Frank departing the club for Tottenham, Christian Norgaard and Bryan Mbeumo both leaving for the big six, and now even potentially Yoane Wissa.

But can the Bees do it again and rebuild, and what could they look like next season?

Big Bees Departure’s

"It's never really been a problem - players come and players go, that's just the nature of it" 💬

Keith Andrews speaks in his first press conference as Brentford head coach on if the club's outgoings will affect the team ⚽️ pic.twitter.com/jgXm27aR37

— Sky Sports News (@SkySportsNews) June 30, 2025

All of the big headlines at the G-Tec Community Stadium have involved departures, following a phenomenal season by Brentford, which also saw a number of brilliant individual campaigns – rumours and interest were bound to happen.

The first domino to fall for Brentford was in goal, with Mark Flekken departing the club after spending two seasons in London. The German attracted interest from Bayer Leverkusen, with the Bundesliga side paying a reported £8.5m for the shot-stopper.

Following a tricky debut campaign, Flekken was a huge success last season, averaging 4.20 saves per 90, with a save percentage of 73.6%

Squad players such as Ben Mee and Joshua Dasilva have also left the club, following the expiration of their contracts. However, Christian Norgaard was the next to leave, the former club captain.

🚨❤️🤍 Christian Nørgaard to Arsenal, here we go! Agreement done club to club after €11m proposal sent today.

Personal terms also agreed with Nørgaard set for medical, Brentford have authorized the player to travel.

New midfielder to replace Thomas. 🇩🇰 pic.twitter.com/Gdp1kbi41U

— Fabrizio Romano (@FabrizioRomano) June 25, 2025

A promotion hero in 2021, the midfielder spent six seasons in London, slightly going under the radar as a solid and crucial cog in Frank’s Brentford machine. A gritty and calm presence in the middle, Norgaard is additionally a strong leader, often wearing the armband.

Next would be Brentford’s biggest departure, and following weeks of speculation, Mbeumo finally completed his move to Manchester United, joining Ruben Amorim’s side for a package of around £65m.

The main man since Toney’s move to Saudi Arabia, the Cameroonian international was fabulous last season, netting 20 goals and eight assists in all competitions. A versatile and rare forward due to his expressive playstyle, Mbeumo registered over 15 goal contributions in all of his six seasons at the club.

After Mbeumo put pen to paper at Old Trafford, it seems that things could not get much worse for the Bees, but with Hugo Ekitike’s move to Liverpool, and Alexander Isak rocking Newcastle with a transfer request, it seems that the Magpies are in the market for a striker and Brentford’s Wissa is the man at the top of the list.

People need to have more discussions about the season Yoane Wissa just had for Brentford pic.twitter.com/wguLpYeZ31

— EchoStats (@echo9stats) July 9, 2025

Brentford’s second top goal-scorer, Wissa, netted 19 goals in 35 Premier League appearances last season, also scoring 12 goals in his previous campaign.

Without Mbeumo, the Bees simply cannot afford to lose Wissa, with the London club reportedly asking for a fee of £40m for the DR Congo international.

Frank Out, Andrews In

Our new Head Coach 🙌 pic.twitter.com/lS0xDZJMLn

— Tottenham Hotspur (@SpursOfficial) June 18, 2025

Player outgoings have not been the only thing at the G-Tec, with the club’s figurehead and tactician, Frank, moving to North London and joining Tottenham Hotspur.

The genius behind Brentford’s promotion and success in the Premier League, within his seven years in the dug-out, Frank recorded a win rate of 42.9% and averaged 1.5 points per game.

A pragmatic and adaptive manager, during his time in the English top-flight, Frank has quickly gained a reputation for being one of the league’s most talented coaches, playing a brave, aggressive, and front-foot style.

Thomas Frank has so much going for him as a manager.

• He’s a very versatile coach and adapts to teams he plays against doesn’t just have 1 style of play.

• his Brentford side were 5th in most goals in the league

• improves and gets the best out of all players he has at… pic.twitter.com/3FOb0NnJle

— kyle (@RicharlisonSZNx) June 6, 2025

With Frank taking over at Tottenham, Brentford had to bring in a replacement, and it did not seem to be a long process in London, with the Bees going in for a rather unconventional and surprising new manager.

Ignoring potential options such as Scott Parker and Kieran McKenna, Brentford opted for an in-house replacement, appointing Keith Andrews as their next manager.

Andrews, the club’s former set-piece coach, has signed a three-year contract as the team’s new manager, with the Irishman set to manage his first games at the helm in August.

Chief Keith 🫡 pic.twitter.com/IzRMeVsEXQ

— Brentford FC (@BrentfordFC) June 27, 2025

Accomplished in his playing career, Andrews spent several years in England, playing for Wolves, Blackburn Rovers, and Bolton Wanderers in the EFL.

With his philosophies and management style not yet known, the 44-year-old could be a perfect and familiar face for Brentford, picking up from where Frank had left off in a similar system that features only a few alterations.

How Can Brentford Fill In Their Gaps This Summer?

Jordan Henderson back in the @PremierLeague 🤩 pic.twitter.com/5dwRDVcZhs

— Brentford FC (@BrentfordFC) July 15, 2025

A manager might be in, but Brentford still have several gaps and cracks in their squad that need to be replaced in the summer transfer window.

The Bees have been busy early on, replacing Flekken with Caoimhin Kelleher for £17m and Norgaard with a fellow leader in Jordan Henderson on a free transfer. Antoni Milambo has also joined the Bees, but at the age of 20 and for a fee of around £1.5m, the Dutchman might not be ready to make a large impact for the first team.

More importantly, the Bees now need to sign a goal-scorer and a creator, especially if Wissa is to leave, and in the current transfer landscape, those types of players do not come cheap.

Brentford are an attractive prospect. However, they are not one of the division's big guns, and they will have to shop either in the Championship or abroad.

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🔵 Bilal El Khannous can be a smart pickup for every top club

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Find anything interesting - Comment 👇 pic.twitter.com/VM5W42nxtU

— Wasi (@Wanalyst007) July 11, 2025

Bilal El Khannouss is a player who fits Brentford’s typical model, an exciting player with plenty of potential who is available for around £20m. The Moroccan had a fine debut season in the Premier League last season, despite Leicester’s relegation to the Championship, registering eight goal contributions in all competitions.

A versatile forward-man, El Khannouss can either play out-wide or centrally, and as a player, the 21-year-old has all the ability to become a creative genius at the top level.

More of a goal-scorer, Evann Guessand is another option for the Bees, if they wish to go abroad. An Ivorian international, Guessand was a relatively unknown quantity before a superb season with Nice, netting 12 goals and assisting eight in Ligue 1 last season.

✈️ Top 5 League U23 Strikers: Aerial duels won %

◉ 55.49% — Thierno Barry 🔵
◎ 49.32% — Benjamin Sesko
◎ 47.83% — Gonçalo Ramos
◎ 46.39% — Adam Hložek
◎ 45.71% — Evann Guessand

Everton 🤝 Aerially dominant striker #EFC

📊 https://t.co/McR5zrPkTO pic.twitter.com/dtUYFO8ADo

— DataMB (@DataMB_) July 8, 2025

Also able to play across the frontline, Guessand’s main preference is to play either as the team’s number nine or in a central role, behind the striker. Per 90, the 24-year-old averaged 0.42 goals, 1.12 chances created, and 1.71 successful dribbles, with the French club wanting around £25m for his services.

Overall, Brentford are going to be a completely different team next season, both in the dug-out and on the pitch, and while they have made a positive start in replacing some of their outgoings, there is plenty still to do at the G-Tec Stadium.

They might not fall into the pits of a relegation battle. However, if Andrews is not able to translate his ideas and philosophies early into his reign, the Bees might need to make some big decisions, and could be in a bother of trouble.