Very odd match but it was exciting aswell. It was 2-2 just 26 minutes in with Rhys Murphyscoring both of our goals. Both teams had quite a few chances and the general defending was poor but Steve Sidwell scored a bullet from about 18 yards to put us ahead. But to follow the general theme of the match they equalised through a Bentley freekick. Still a point here isn't disastrous.
Very dull game in the first half with both teams play being poor and to be honest we didn't pick up in the second half and they took a slightly deserved lead. Thankfully we scored another late goal with Steve Sidwell racing through 85 minutes in to get a dramatic equaliser.
It's never easy at Goodison Park and they started off very well putting us under quite a lot of pressure. We eventually caved in and they took the lead but it got a response out of the players and we improved a little bit towards the end of the half with Tomas Necid heading home a Seamus Coleman cross. The second half was alot better and we scored the winning goal 20 minutes into the half thanks to Rhys Murphy finishing off a good team goal on the edge of the area. Big win.
Man City have an incredible squad so to come here and get a deserved point is something we can be proud of. They took the lead and controlled it a little bit but we defended extremely well and grew in confidence as the match went on. Rhys Murphy equalised with 15 minutes to go give us a fantastic point.
Last game of the month and I was glad it was a home one. The match followed recent trend of the month which was us conceding first early on, we need to fix this as it could derail us in the future. Wolves deserved to be up at half time and I had to stress the importance of the match to the players. Thankfully the lads came out fantastically with Tomas Necid and Rhys Murphy combining well for the latter to score the equaliser for us. We pressed hard after that and penned them a little bit and as we always do with the crowd behind us we found the winner through Tomas Necid's golden head. No one can beat the man in the air.
March Overview
A historic month for the football club in which we won the Carling Cup the first major trophy in the clubs history. We also managed 2 wins and 3 draws in the league against good opposition so overall I am delighted with the way the month has gone.
After completing a decent month it was important we finished the season strong.We had a couple of really tough games this month so it will be hard but hopefully a top 6 finish can be achieved.
EPL - West Ham (Home)
Very tight game, they are a strong team and have some very good players but we were better than them in the second half and a brace from Rhys Murphy gave us the victory.
EPL - Stoke (Away)
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We were extremely poor throughout this match and the players have let themselves down with this performance. Nevertheless we showed the fantastic resolve we always do by scoring 2 goals in the last 15 minutes with Rhys Murphy pulling one back and Diego Renan equalising from the spot 4 minutes later.
EPL - Chelsea (Home)
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We feel sick. This result would of leapfrogged us above them into the 4th spot with 2 games to go. We dominated the entire match but couldn't seem to take the decisive lead.They went ahead both times Tomas Necid pulling one back with a powerful header. Steve Sidwell scored the equaliser against his old club but we couldn't find the goal that would have given us the win we deserved,
The lads looked very dejected after the Chelsea result and we were woeful today. It was hard to watch at times, we couldn't pass the ball and there were no forward runs. Even when Rhys Murphy pulled one back for us we still did not gather any momentum.
EPL - Man Utd (Home)
Great game full of goals, sadly were on the wrong end of it but we gave the fans something to shout about on the final day of the season. We somehow managed to still finish 6th despite not finding a win in our lasr 4 games. This along with the Carling Cup victory has completed the best season in the history of Brentford.
It has been the best season in the entire history of the club and we as a group are delighted with what we have achieved on the pitch this year. A 6th place finish along with winning the Carling Cup has made it a year to remember for the club and more importantly the fans.
The entire team were great this season but I have to give special shout outs to a certain few.
Rhys Murphy - The Brentford favourite had his best ever season with the club. He played 34 league games scorin 20 goals. And got 31 goals with 6 assists in 44 appearances. Sensational. He had an average rating of 7.24.
Tomas Necid - We had been tracking him for awhile and I was delighted with the 9.5M buy. He took a while to find his groove but he still had a great season for us forming a deadly partnership with Rhys Murphy. He played every league game scoring 17 goals and got 21 goals with 13 assists in all competition. He had an average rating of 7.27.
Vincenzo Rennella - The the clinical Italian has been fantastic since he signed for us and he really came into his own this season. He made 44 appearances scoring 10goals with 14assists. A great season for the lad. Sebastian Rudy - The little German was very highly touted til City destroyed his career. We got him at a good price and he made 39 appearances scoring 4 goals with 10 assists.
Diego Renan - He was a steal at 5M and very big european clubs have been interested in the lad but he had a good solid season with us. He still finding his feet and was always impressive. He played 42 games scoring 1 goal whilst making 6 assists. His average rating was 7.15 which shows how solid he was. Darnel Situ - Brentford's most expensive signing showed everyone who doubted him that he was well worth the money. He was a rock at the back and played every single league game this year and played a total of 48 games this season scoring 1 goal and making 2 assists. He had an average rating of 7.32.
Matthew Kilgallon - Matthew has been nothing short of a revelation since he joined the club and pretty much kept us in the league in our first year. He continued his fantastic form this season and parted Situ all the way through the season. He played 44 games scoring 1 goal with an average rating of 7.26.
Flop(s) of the Season
Morgan Schneiderlin (Free) - He only played 25 games for the club this season due to his persistant injuries and inconsistant form. I will re-evaluate my squad come end of the season but his position is not strong at all.
Nemanja Matic (Free) - Awful season for the lad. He too was not fit at the start despite playing many friendlies. He got injured early on and only managed to make 18 appearances for us which he was poor in nearly every time. Showed himself to be too lightweight and got 2 red cards aswell. Not impressed and I will probably be shipping him off.
All the other signings were good thankfully
Here is the final league table in it's entirety, very pleased with the way we performed this season
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Rhys Murphy and Tomas Necid netted 37 league goals between them got 19 assists too. Not a bad Premier strike force considering they cost lest than 10M in total.
Overachievers for 2 seasons in a row
It's been a great season and hopefully next season we can push on even further, it will be difficult but we will try. Expect big changes in the summer.
Pre-season report coming later tonight. thank you to everyone who is following
After completing the best season in the history of Brentford FC it was time to stop and really have a look at the squad and there were massive changes this summer but don't worry the core of the team is still the same of course.
I selected "continental finish through league qualification" I was given a transfer budget of 32.5M and a wage budget of 500K I realized this was a good time to enhance the training and youth facilities so I did and the board agreed to improve them. Unfortunately we cannot improve our capacity of 15,000 due to the council
Here is an overview of my transfers and I was delighted with my deals. I spent alot of money but over half of it was on one player and I recouped loads so I still have an extremely healthy budget.
Jano Ananidze (£20M) - He is an extremely talented young AMC and I was very willing to spend the money on him. He will take time to find his find his feet but I'm sure he will be well worth the money.
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Franco Zuculini (£7M) - I decided to bring in Bruno's brother Franco Zucilini as we needed a bit more steel in the midfield. Plus Bruno had problems settling in last year and I'm sure Franco will be fine with his brothers help. Very talented footballer and I'm pleased with the price we thrashed out for him.
Marcus Berg (£2.4M) - We needed a good back up striker and I feel we got one here in Berg. He is a good finisher and I'm sure he can bring what is required to the table.
Ng Man Kin (£3.3M) - The brilliantly named defender (regen) is natural in CB and the LB position which is fantastic. Plus I think he is already a very good player that can only get better.
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Stephen Henderson (£2.5M) - We needed a better goalkeeper because Lars Stubhaub as good as he has been over the years is sometimes prone to a silly mistake. Stephen is a good goalie and is homegrown having played for Villa.
Jeremy Helan (£3.2M) - Having sold Rausch we needed a replacement LB and Jeremy is a talented lad. He's very quick and is very accomplished all round, speaking English is a bonus.
Dirk Marcellis (Free) - Dirk is a good accomplished defender with 30+ caps for Holland. He will make very good cover for Killgallon and Situ, he is also able to play the right back role which is great.
Javi Garcia (Free) - Probably my best signing this summer. Javi is a fantastic player in the prime of his career for us to get him on a free is really something.
Tijani Belaid (Free) - The attacking midfielder is fantastic technically and I think he will make a good super sub. The type of player with the ability to create something out of nothing but not the work rate to consistently perform.
Outs
Exodus at Griffin Park
Although Brentford spent big this summer they sold big too. With 14 players departing the club. When Neeson was questioned about it he explained his decisions.
"Well I felt the squad needed a freshen up. We didn't change too much, the core of the team is still the same but there were many who felt they were not starting enough.The only player I really didn't want to go was big Stevie Sidwell but he wanted 2 years on his deal and were only offering 1. It was hard letting some players go but that's football and you have to get on with it but I have really enjoyed working with these lads and I wish them all the very best."
Konstantin Rausch (£5M) - The left back did well for us in the 2 seasons he was with us but I felt with the clubs that wanted him and the fact we got him on a free it was best to let him go. He leaves having made 69 appearancesfor the club.
Morgan Schneiderlin (£4M) - Morgan had a poor season for us last year and once again considering we got him on a free there was good profit to be made. Wish him all the best and I hope he finds his feet in Turkey. He leaves having made 26 appearances for us.
Hedwiges Maduro (£3M) - We signed Hedwiges for about £650K when we first came up into the Premier League and he has done an okay job for us but not enough for the level we wanted to be at now. He leaves having made 67 appearances for the club over 2 seasons. Isaiah Osbourne (£3.4M) - Isaiah defied all odd for us in a way. He was staring at retirement being released for so long but we picked him up and he did fantastically well for us. It's with a heavy heart that I let him go, top professional who made great improvements under us. He leaves having made 81 appearances scoring 8 goals over 3 seasons.
Nemanja Matic (£3.5M) - We signed Nemanja on a free but he never got going for us and was poor throughout the campaign. I feel it is an excellent bit of business as we was truly dire for us. He made 18 appearances for us.
Michael Taylor (£1.5M) - We signed the Scottish regen for £110K and he looked very exciting but two serious injuries blighted his career with us and he was only able to make 20 appearances scoring 4 goals.
Kelvin Etuhu (£1.2M) - Kelvin did well for us when he was available but again fitness problems limited him and he failed to cope with the Premier League. He leaves having made 72 appearances scoring 22 goals
Ivan (£2.5M) We got the Spanish regen on a free and he was only earning £150 p/w with us so it was a good snip. He went out on loan in the second season and did well but his attitude was very poor which is a shame because he is a talented player who will go on to become Premier League quality I'm sure but he didn't fit into our system well enough. He made 16 appearances for us.
Corry Evans (£2.5M) - This was the most difficult decision to make. Corry has been a great servant to the club and really helped us rise through the leagues but he wasn't playing enough which is why we loaned him out to Hearts last year. When I told him I could not guarantee him first team football we both decided it was best for him elsewhere. He made 131 appearances for us scoring 7 goals.He is still a fan favourite and I will miss the lad.
Steve Sidwell (Free) - Sad to see him go as we could not agree the right contract. He wanted a 2 year extension I was only willing to give him a 1 one year deal. He was intstrumental in the league for us last year. He made He made 77 appearances scoring 1 goal.
Targets/Aims
Well after overachieving again it is going to be very hard to top that but with the transfers we have made and the healthy financial position we are in we can only go forward. It is going to take some time for the new signings to gel but once they do I feel we will become a very very good team.
The media has predicted 10th and the board are expecting a European space this season. Myself I am hoping we can finish higher than last year and have a good cup run in Europe, but who knows where the season will take us.
The squad is very good, I have put together a very good coaching staff and we are almost debt free and worth 80M. The club is improving the facilities all over but we cannot expand the stadium which is a blow. Everything is looking good here and if we can achieve a Champions League spot this season it would be a dream.
The most exciting season in Brentford's history is about to take place.
