Brentford have agreed a deal with their set-piece coach Keith Andrews for the former Republic of Ireland midfielder to replace Thomas Frank as the manager.
Andrews is understood to have impressed Brentford’s hierarchy when interviewed for the role after Frank’s departure for Tottenham. Frank’s former assistant Justin Cochrane had been a candidate to step up before he followed Frank to Spurs.
Brentford are believed to have considered a number of external candidates including Ipswich’s Kieran McKenna and Francesco Farioli, who left Ajax last month. But Andrews, who was appointed by Brentford in July 2024 having been on the coaching staff with Sheffield United, Ireland and MK Dons, is poised to be handed his first senior managerial role.
The 44-year-old’s appointment would be a risk for Brentford, who are facing a fight to keep hold of last season’s top scorer, Bryan Mbeumo, after Manchester United made an improved bid worth £60 million for the Cameroon forward, for whom the owner, Matthew Benham, is thought to be holding out for £65 million.
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But Andrews, who won 35 caps and served as Stephen Kenny’s Ireland assistant between 2020 and 2023, would again represent continuity after Frank was promoted from his role as an assistant to replace Dean Smith in 2018. Frank had managed Brøndby for almost three years and Denmark youth teams before joining Brentford.
Damien Duff has been linked with a role as an assistant to Andrews, his former Ireland team-mate, after his shock departure from the Shelbourne jon on Sunday, although Brentford and Duff have distanced themselves from those reports. – Guardian
