Thomas Frank is adamant Brentford will survive – and thrive – without Ivan Toney.
Whether they find themselves in that predicament once the globe’s transfer windows all close remains to be seen.
Toney, 28, in the last year of his contract, was left out of the opening-day win against Crystal Palace amid strong interest – mainly from Saudi Arabia – in the England hitman.
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And the chances are it will be the same at Liverpool this weekend, with the future of the £50million-rated hitman still ‘up in the air’.
But whatever happens over the next fortnight – the Saudi window is open for an extra week – Frank is optimistic his squad will continue to prosper among the elite.
(Image: Getty Images)
As they did for much of last season when Toney was serving his betting ban – and again last weekend when beating Palace.
The Bees boss, approaching six years at the helm, declared: “I’d love to keep surviving and thriving. That’s definitely the plan and we are in a good place to do that.
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“There were very good elements of the Palace game I loved. Just having all our best players available – except a few – does so much to our game.
“We do have quite good players, you know! And we still go a little bit under the radar, which is nice. But we will develop constantly, no doubt about it, with or without Ivan.”
If Saudi appears the most likely destination, Frank refuses to rule out a switch closer to home for Toney.
“I expect it to be solved after the 30th. Lots of clubs have their windows closed after that, so let’s see,” added the Dane ahead of the clash with Arne Slot’s Merseysiders.
Amazingly, some stats suggest Brentford win and score more without their ex-Peterborough hotshot. Frank argues they are misleading.
He insisted: “We definitely need to be aware how much we read into the numbers. Last year with and without Ivan is a small sample.
“How do explain our second season in the Premier League when he scored 21 goals – through the roof? Ivan’s a fantastic player. I always love him in my team.”
Hence, he would never be banished to train with the kids – as happening down the road to Chelsea ’s unwanted stars.
Frank said: “I see Ivan come in every day with a smile. He’s pure energy as a person and gives that to the group. It’s no problem.”