Thomas Frank exclusive: Brentford 'curse' continues to push Bees on

Thomas Frank allowed himself a glass of red wine to savour Brentford's remarkable first Premier League season and toast an injury-time victory which moved them into the top half - but soon the 'curse' was back.

It is one Frank describes as having a grip on the club to never be satisfied with where they are, even now at their highest point, back in the top-flight for the first time since 1947.

"You want to get even further and the development from when I stepped in here the first time in December 2016 to now is through the roof, but we always want more," Frank told Sky Sports ahead of their Saturday Night Football clash with Tottenham.

"That is the 'curse' that we have here, we are never satisfied. I have my 24 hours where we celebrate and enjoy a glass of red or whatever but after that we're pushing, pushing, pushing to get better."

Frank thumps his fist into the palm of his hand as he delivers those final words standing at the side of a pitch at Brentford's training ground where his players had just finished their Tuesday morning session, the mood buoyant after claiming a fifth win in six matches which has guaranteed them another year in the Premier League.

One can imagine the Danish boss delivering the same message to his squad and staff, who have exceeded all expectations following promotion via the Championship play-offs.

This form has arrived after a run of just one win in 11 league matches plus an FA Cup exit to Everton in February which meant they had suffered five straight defeats in all competitions for the first time since 2007, when they were in League Two under Terry Butcher.

That spell led to Butcher losing his job but there were no such concerns over Frank's position - not least because the club had shown