Brentford have progressed beyond their reliance on Ivan Toney.

Sport

Nobody has scored more Premier League goals for Brentford than Ivan Toney. For a long time, he was the Bees’ attacking focal point. Toney was their most reliable match-winner and difference-maker. Had the 28-year-old left the West London club at this point, a huge void would have been left in Thomas Frank’s lineup.

Now, though, with Toney seemingly on his way out of the Brentford Community Stadium, there’s no reason to panic. The England international was left out of Brentford’s matchday squad for Sunday’s season opener against Crystal Palace, but his absence was barely felt as the home side claimed an assured 2-1 victory.

“A lot of things are going on with Ivan, especially with transfers, there’s a lot of transfer interest. Because of all that, we’ve decided not to include him in the squad,” Frank replied when asked about Toney’s absence before kick-off. “I can’t give too much away the day before. Of course Ivan is a top player, we all know that. He has been fantastic for us for four years but we showed last season we can cope without him.”

Of course, Brentford had to make do without Toney for a large part of last season and in that time they learned how to cope without the centre forward. Yoane Wissa stepped up and contributed 12 Premier League goals with Bryan Mbuemo also raising his game to make up for Toney’s unavailability.

With Arsenal, Chelsea and Saudi Pro League team Al-Ahli all linked with Toney this summer, the truth is Brentford have progressed beyond their reliance on the centre forward. In fact, they are a better side without him, as the opening weekend win over Crystal Palace proved. This season, even if Toney leaves, could be one to remember for the Bees.

Mbuemo and Wissa give Brentford a greater degree of mobility in the attacking third. They are both exceptional in a technical sense and demonstrated this by putting Palace to the sword. The pair embody what Frank wants Brentford to be as a modern and adaptable team capable of holding its own against the strongest of opponents. They represent the future of the West London club.

Aerially, Toney was always a threat for the Bees. Frank has long placed an emphasis on set pieces and the former Newcastle United forward is among the best at getting on the end of corner kicks and freekicks. This is a dimension Brentford will lose if they ultimately sell Toney to the Saudi Pro League or somewhere else before the transfer window closes.

To push themselves up the Premier League table, though, Brentford must become a more dynamic team and that process is already happening with Mbuemo and Wissa leading the line. They also have summer signing Igor Thiago still to integrate with the Brazilian expected to be sidelined through injury for a number of months.

Last season, Brentford were somewhat fortunate to avoid relegation. Had the three teams that ultimately went down been better, Frank’s team could have been sucked into trouble, especially as the injuries mounted up over the course of the campaign. Toney wasn’t alone in being sidelined for so long.

Having come through that period, though, Brentford are intent on progressing. If the last three seasons after promotion were about consolidation at Premier League level, the next step must be for the Bees to repeat the top half finish they achieved in 2022/23. Selling Toney for a large transfer fee, reinvesting the money and leaving fully into the changes that have already been made will help do this.