Kamo joins but will King Jota abdicate ? Reece Cole – what a goal !

Boom. That was a day and a half. Following weeks of tumbleweed, football has come back to Brentford with a bang. There’s been a new signing in Kamohelo Mokotjo.  We’ve had the first pre-season friendly with a 5-1 run out at Aldershot. Yet all the talk was of  the main man, Jota, missing that game following a deluge of transfer speculation involving the likes of West Ham, Newcastle, Brighton and just about any other name our local press could chuck at the story to generate click bait headlines and some form of substance.

And so, with the absolute greatest of respect to Kamo, we can only start with Jota. Everybody knows just what he did before going out on loan to Eibar for personal reasons and everybody knows just how incredibly he performed upon this return in January. His ability is staggering, his enthusiasm and love for the club is apparent and he is one of those rare players to unite all Brentford fans in a common opinion – namely just a wonderful player and, quite possibly, the most skillful we’ve had the privilege to watch in living memory.

‘Official’ love him, too

Well, whatever nonsense/guesswork was going around cyberspace (and boy, here was an example of how a rumour can spread like wildfire thanks to social media), it was down to none other than Billy Reeves as the right man in the right place. His post match interview with Dean cut to the nub of the matter, where our head coach confirmed:

“Jota came to see me yesterday and he said that his agent has told him there’s a bid imminent from a Premier League club. He knows that club will want a massive bid….If the bid doesn’t come in and its not big enough Jota’s happy enough to stay at Brentford as a Brentford player”

This seemed to immediately rule out West Ham as potential suitors. The words ‘bid’ and ‘massive’ being anything but their style, as evidenced during the faffing around with Scott Hogan at Christmas. That, something which eventually worked to our advantage as the player moved to Aston Villa for a figure documented in the media (although officially undisclosed) as £15million.

Dean went on to add that,“It would have to be a massive bid to tempt the football club” , so the question is now, what happens next? And apologies if that puts anybody off their cornflakes with images of Phil Tufnell or Ally McCoist faux-flirting with Sue Barker.

Let’s rule out West Ham. His flair and skill would perhaps be at odds with their more industrial style of football whilst they’re generally all talk and no trousers when it comes to significant transfer activity. My gut fells is one of those clubs we were on Championship terms with last season – namely a Brighton, Huddersfield or Newcastle United. Although don’t rule out the likes of Bournemouth or Watford. Hey, I realise that’s a quarter of the league in one sentence but I’m just trying to figure it out.

Talking to another source close to the club last night, the name Brighton also came up. On target or miles off? Who knows. Will they, or anyone else, put in what Dean confirms “would have to be a massive bid to tempt the football club” ?

Billy’s interview cuts to the chase, as ever

It’s interesting. We know the financial rewards for reaching the top flight. £170milllion is the figure touted for going up from the Championship. Weigh that up against £8m – the figure Billy suggested to Dean – for a player who will be out of contract when this campaign ends. Which way will the club jump? Indeed, will we even get a choice if Jota decides his heart and feet belong in the Premier League immediately?

We all know of his love for Griffin Park. That much is apparent . But agents and money both talk. We showed loyalty to him in supporting the loan move back to Eibar and that was paid back in bucketloads when the player returned at Christmas. Indeed, Dean spoke earlier in the week (in that SKY interview) about our aspiration being top six. By definition, that means promotion or a shot at it through the play-offs. With it comes that dumper truck fill of money and the top flight football that Jota is so clearly capable of.

Is he prepared to wait? Can we make him an offer he can’t refuse? Are we financially able to turn down that short term hit of cash which comes with his transfer fee ? Are we able to make it without a man who is most prolific talent? This one is going to take am massive leap of faith from all parties if Jota is to stay a Bee.

Brighton. West Ham. Other. This is going to be a very squeaky next couple of weeks on that front. I’d also note that the fact we are even having this conversation – top flight aspirations and another multi million pound transfer – shows yet again how far we’ve come as a club. This time though, I’m hoping it’ll play out in a fan friendly way and the King doesn’t abdicate just yet .

On the more positive front, Kamo Mokotjo has signed from FC Twente. Top marks Beesotted for calling that one. Dean Smith told Billy “He’s a ball winning midfielder. His passing stats were incredible last year in the Dutch league“ whilst his quote on official describes Kamo as “a defensive midfielder who can break play up, cover a lot of ground and use the ball intelligently”

The news was preceded by a short video in which the media team debated whether there was a gimmicky way to announce his signing before settling on the traditional signing photo. Reaction to the 40 second film has been mixed – both cringe and brilliant.

For me, we are in the latter camp – a clear attempt at taking the ‘p’ from the likes of Aston Villa (That. Whatsapp) and the seemingly modern trend for ‘hilarious’ announcements. Often involving hashtags.

Whilst the build up to the punchline was perhaps a tad laboured (Chris Wickham, Ciaran Brett et al are certainly no Matt Damon on the acting front) we got there in the end. Top marks all round and I hope supporters can see it for the obvious joke that this was !

And did anybody spot new programme editor Sam Marshall in there? He’s on twitter now as @SamMarshall94 .#WelcomeSam.

D’oh!

One other observation on this news but has Kamo been given the world’s longest signing scarf? Or, as one New Road observer would suggest to me last night, perhaps he’s only 5ft two ?

Kamo signs – he won’t be cold in the winter

As for on pitch action, we can only be happy with a 5-1 win at Aldershot. I wasn’t there so can’t add much more beyond what we’ve all seen on social media. That said, special mention to Reece Cole in setting an early bar for goal of the season. What a strike for the youngster and, with the finish/build up play, an effort somewhat reminiscent of Stuart Dallas at Fulham.

You can see that one Twitter now.

Thanks again for reading. I’m off to watch The Lions and pray for Jota.

📹 Pick that out! @reececole32 nets a beauty vs @OfficialShots pic.twitter.com/1XxJNGyz2V

— Brentford FC (@BrentfordFC) July 7, 2017

AUTHOR’S PLUG – (it’s all for charity).

And if you’d like to read more about Jota and last season then please don’t forget (how could you?) that the regular season review e-book remains available for download. This one is titled ‘Welcome home, King Jota’ and this time around it is for a great cause. All funds raised are being given to the Brentford FC Community Sports Trust. Likewise, any subsequent sales from the previous versions.

Containing the least bad of the blogs from May 2016 to May 2017 and a bit of new material too, you can pick it up, here. It’s just £1.99.

So why not do something great to help our club. What else will £1.99 get you? What better way to spend some time on the commute to work, the beach, by the pool or even hiding out in the toilet at the office?

For less than the cost of half a pint on match day, it’s the season review that has been designed to fit in your pocket (if you are using an i-phone).

Nick Bruzon

Lunga off target, Kamohelo en route and Leeds / Wycombe go kit crazy

All the talk in Brentford circles yesterday was about the imminent signing of Kamohelo Mokotjo from FC Twente. There’s not much these pages can add on what’s already been said – South African international defensive midfielder, currently undergoing medical – so we’ll leave the bulk of that one to the likes of Beesotted for now . Besides, there was more kit news out there – with Leeds United and Wycombe Wanderers the latest to dazzle.

First up though, two further points on the Mokotjo story, assuming it proves to be correct. Given Beesotted are getting behind it, you can assume this one is a fairly safe bet. Their record on rumours is second to none.

Is Mokotjo about to become a Bee ?

Both are observations from Twitter. First up, from South African Manchester United fan Lunga Biyela. His bio describes him as a sports writer although it also refers to to both “May the Force be with you” and “#JediBatman”. Additionally, his ‘pinned’ tweet is a lightsaber battle montage and his header photo shows a brass band at a Man U game so I’m not sure how credible a footballing authority we can take him to be.

That said, he had an opinion on the move. An opinion which was somewhat ridiculed and tells you all you need to know about how much many football fans still have their heads buried in the corporate sand. Nice to see Brentford fan Roy Beckerson, amongst others, winning that one.

The other thing of note was a bit closer to home and came via Ben Plumb. Given the recent cringy nonsense from alleged ’Steve Bruce’ & co at Aston Villa (if nothing else, would he REALLY call the boss a solitary ‘Dr’ in a text conversation) , a request has been put out there.

Of course, the club are saying nothing – no change there – but a flag has been raised. Nice one, Ben. Couldn’t agree more. Given me a signing shirt/scarf and picture of the player with pen poised over contract any day.

Next up – kit. Wycombe Wanderers and Leeds United were amongst those to go yesterday. Starting with Leeds, the Elland Road outfit’s just has to be seen to see believed.

Not so much the gold trim or extraneous amount of Kappa logos but more the fit. It is less stitched together as practically painted on. I can only imagine this is going to look horrific on anybody who has ever eaten a cake or half time pie. Even Sir Bradley Wiggins would struggle in this one.

The official blurb is great. The shirt is described as Kombat Skin 2018 technology which will be impossible for the opposition to grab whilst, at the same time, magically improving performance standards. Given their recent scores against Brentford, it’ll take more than a spray on shirt to help Leeds on that front .

On the plus side, my sources close to Elland Road (Gibraltar) tell me this is purely the player version. There’s no need for fans to go on a crash diet as it does also come in a more forgiving supporter ‘friendly’ sizing.

As for Wycombe – their new goalkeeper shirt is very much a sight for sore eyes. Or, should that be , a cause of them. It is absolutely stunning. I love it. Whilst not as stylish as our own red ‘away’ from last season, even to call them lurid would be something of an understatement.

Let’s be clear – I love these. What brilliant shirts. Supposedly designed to put opposition strikers off, you can’t deny they are eye-catching . Perhaps something for our own kitman Bob to think about next season ?

AUTHOR’S PLUG – (it’s all for charity).

And if you’d like to read more about last season including  wins over Villa and Leeds, amongst others then please don’t forget (how could you?) that the regular season review e-book remains available for download. This one is titled ‘Welcome home, King Jota’ and this time around it is for a great cause. All funds raised are being given to the Brentford FC Community Sports Trust. Likewise, any subsequent sales from the previous versions.

Containing the least bad of the blogs from May 2016 to May 2017 and a bit of new material too, you can pick it up, here. It’s just £1.99.

So why not do something great to help our club. What else will £1.99 get you? What better way to spend some time on the commute to work, the beach, by the pool or even hiding out in the toilet at the office?

For less than the cost of half a pint on match day, it’s the season review that has been designed to fit in your pocket (if you are using an i-phone).

Nick Bruzon

 

Top transfer rumours of the summer reviewed as Chelsea enter the fray

Summer’s here and news is slow. The potential signing of Chelsea midfielder Josh McEachran is the latest story to intrigue Brentford supporters, with his being the name on everybody’s lips on Friday.

Having already added Konstantin Kerschbaumer to our ample midfield, is there really any truth to this latest rumour? At this rate we’ll have enough central players to make up a second Brentford team (or Wycombe Wanderers, as I saw one Twitter wag refer to yesterday).

Who knows? Several sites have reported this one as imminent although with no leaked pictures, there is nothing concrete to suggest any level of accuracy for a player who, on paper, would be a wonderful signing for Brentford.

Is Josh next on Mr Benham’s shopping list?

Beesotted have run with this one and, to be fair to Dave, Billy and the team, they are more often than not on the money when it comes to this sort of subject. Unlike some of their rivals in the press.

Indeed, looking at the twelve major transfer rumours of the summer so far, only three have come to fruition. One out of four ain’t bad (as Meatloaf didn’t even get close to singing) but it also shows how much hot air and desperate padding does the rounds this time of year if you think that nine of these ‘hot leads’ have, so far, failed to materialise.

Rumoured OUT

Jota – Swansea City (No sighting)

Andre Gray – QPR (No sighting)

Tony Craig – Millwall (No sighting)

James Tarkowski – Fulham (No sighting)

Moses Odubajo – Everton (No sighting)

David Button – Aston Villa (No sighting)

Rumoured IN

Carlton Cole – free agent (No sighting)

Yoann Barbet – Chamois Niortais (CONFIRMED)

Konstantin Kerschbaumer – Admira Wacker (CONFIRMED)

Michiel Kramer – ADO Den Haag (No sighting)

Andreas Bjelland – FC Twente (CONFIRMED)

Josh McEachran – Chelsea (No sighting)

Konstantin and Andreas are 2 of the rumours to deliver, so far

No doubt more will be come clear over the coming weeks. Especially as Marinus has the boys back in training. I’ve no idea what our starting XI would be right now, such is the change in infrastructure and personnel we have already started to see. This before you then factor in the head coach’s personal preferences (assuming ‘the model’ has room for these) and any other transfer activity – whether from the above rumour list or out of left field.

I’d hate to be a journalist at this time of year – scratching around to find stories out of nowhere and waiting for leads to pay off. No doubt we’ll see more of these over the coming weeks and no doubt some might happen – if you chuck enough mud then some will, eventually, stick. Likewise, if you believe them all then we’ll have no team left.

Brentford fans are getting worried about the likes of Jota and Andre, in particular, leaving but there’s been no substance to any of this. The papers love to talk and supporters love to read it.

Personally, I can’t help but feel that with our numbers ever increasing the ‘out door’ will, eventually, swing. You can’t run a side on a bloated squad and so somebody, somewhere, is going to be upset sooner than later.

But equally, I can’t help but feel that Matthew Benham knows exactly what he is doing. He wants success for this club, no question, and he’s not going to do anything to jeopardise that.

Brentford are on the up, make no mistake. The press may not have too much of an idea about who is staying and who is going but we’ll find out eventually. And when it happens, let’s all just show a bit of faith and confidence in our owner. He’s invested heavily, and very well, so far.

Long may this continue.

Nick Bruzon

Should you want to read more Brentford related thoughts (through the eyes of a supporter) then the amalgamated Last Word compendiums from the last two seasons are available for your kindle. Celebrating like they’d won the FA Cup (2013/14) and Tales from the football village (2014/15) tell the full stories of our promotion and subsequent life in the Championship, through the eyes of a supporter.

Featuring the best of the not so bad columns and some additional, previously unseen material, they’re just another way to get through a few days over the summer as we wait for the transfer news to be confirmed and the preseason tour to start.

Thanks for reading.

Matthew Benham wins at Twitter, again, as Bjelland joins Bees.

Well played to the local press as a second, rumoured, transfer was confirmed in less than a week. This time, Danish international centre back Andreas Bjelland was the man to join Brentford, from FC Twente, following hot on the heels of Konstantin Kerschbaumer.

As ever, all the pertinent information is available on the BBC, the club site, Beesotted and just about any other news source going. I’ll leave you to pick through those at your leisure, suffice to say that signing a player of this calibre (21 full international caps including three of their Euro 2016 qualifiers) is a massive statement of intent from Matthew Benham.

As ever though, this column is less about the ‘proper’ stuff and more about the associated bits on the side that may not get so much of a public airing. And whilst Matthew may be looking to make a statement on the pitch, off it he continues to lead the way.

To read the rest of this article, season 2015/16 is now available to download onto Kindle (and other electronic reading device) in full, as :   Ready. Steady. Go Again. : Brentford FC season review 2015 – 2016

Thanks for reading and all your comments over the course of the season. For now, it’s the annual clean up to make more space on the site for the inevitable follow up. However, ‘close season’ will continue in full, further along.

But wait, like all the best infomercials, there’s more. The last three seasons of the Last Word : Celebrating like they’d won the FA Cup; Tales from the football village and Ready. Steady. Go Again are also available in one combined volume as: 

Brentford Football Club – The Bees are going up. Season reviews: 2013/14, 2014/15 & 2015/16 

We did. And we still are ! 

Thumbs up for the new team

 

KK ‘signs’ but is Bjelland next as the Red Imps draw?

What a Tuesday. Whilst the Brentford clubsite remained silent on the subject of transfers, with the exception of Alfie Mawson joining Barnsley, elsewhere it seemed that there was plenty to pick up on. No more so than in regards to Konstantin Kerschbaumer and Andreas Bjelland, where in the case of the former even his own Admira Wacker team took to Facebook to wish him well on his move. And there was Champions’ League intrigue where Lincoln Red Imps of Gibraltar faced FC Santa Coloma of Andorra in the first leg of a tie that would see the winners pitted against Matthew Benham’s own FC Midtjylland.

But we start in Austria and that Facebook announcement, confirming what we already knew after Matthew Benham’s video clue followed a leaked photograph on Friday.

To read the rest of this article, season 2015/16 is now available to download onto Kindle (and other electronic reading device) in full, as :   Ready. Steady. Go Again. : Brentford FC season review 2015 – 2016

Thanks for reading and all your comments over the course of the season. For now, it’s the annual clean up to make more space on the site for the inevitable follow up. However, ‘close season’ will continue in full, further along.

But wait, like all the best infomercials, there’s more. The last three seasons of the Last Word : Celebrating like they’d won the FA Cup; Tales from the football village and Ready. Steady. Go Again are also available in one combined volume as: 

Brentford Football Club – The Bees are going up. Season reviews: 2013/14, 2014/15 & 2015/16 

We did. And we still are ! 

Why has the dog eaten Joey’s homework?

Does anybody know where Joey Barton is? With the QPR midfielder being spotted at Saturday’s Brentford v Derby County game rather than his own club’s clash with Chelsea, I don’t just mean at the weekend gone by.

To read the rest of this article, season 2014/15 is now available to download onto Kindle (and other electronic reading device) in full. Containing additional material and even some (poor) editing, you can get it here for less than the cost of a Griffin Park matchday programme or Balti Pie.

 Thanks for reading and all your comments over the course of the season. For now, I need to make more space on the site for any follow up. However, ‘close season’ will continue in full, further along.