Premier League 2022/23 Preview: Brentford

Predicted finish: 15th 

After comfortably avoiding relegation in their debut Premier League campaign, Brentford will be aiming to improve on a respectable 13th placed finish with 46 points.

Under Thomas Frank, the Bees produced a number of memorable performances against some of the top sides in the land. An opening day 2-0 victory over Arsenal set the tone for the season ahead, while a 3-3 draw against Liverpool and a 4-1 away victory over Chelsea proved Brentford can perform at the highest level.

The Bees will be keen to avoid the dreaded second-season syndrome and during the second half of the campaign suffered a severe dip in form. The West London club were inspired by the January arrival of Christian Eriksen, who has since opted to make the lucrative switch to Manchester United.

Brentford also managed to beat Bayern Munich to the capture of highly rated Scottish fullback Aaron Hickey on a four-year contract. The former Bologna man, who recently turned 20, has already racked up 47 Serie A appearances and scored 5 goals during that time.

The arrival of Ben Mee on a free transfer also brings welcome Premier League experience to the Bees' backline. The club are however yet to sign a suitable replacement for the departing Eriksen and are currently lacking a creative spark in the middle of the park.

In terms of outgoings, Brentford have allowed a number of players to leave on loan and could yet face a battle to keep striker Ivan Toney, who has been the subject of interest from both Newcastle and Manchester United.

Back in January, Toney was forced to apologise to both his manager and supporters after a video emerged on social media where he appeared to criticise the club. In response, the 26-year old wrote on Twitter:

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