Levi schreef: ↑14 feb 2024, 19:03
Vertrekt dus al na dit seizoen. Realiteit van een Belgische ploeg allicht. Er ligt een pak werk op de tafel deze zomer.
Thiago na 1 seizoen verkopen voor 3X wat we betaalden is goeie deal, er ligt geen werk op tafel, Jutgla was fantastisch bezig tot Thiago plots begon te scoren met z'n ogen dicht. Contract Jutgla verlengen, leuke spits!
Jutgla mag wat mij betreft vertrekken. In een 4-3-3 te licht en scoort al bij al te weinig. Er was sprake dat Betis er 8 voor wou leggen deze winter en daar kon ik eerlijk gezegd perfect mee leven (op voorwaarde dat Vermant er was).
Na zijn ongelukkige afwerking van de laatste wedstrijden en zijn penaltymisser van gisteren lees ik vaak "Brentford zal zich in de haren wrijven omdat ze daar 37 miljoen voor betaalden". Het volgende artikel van "The Atletic" van begin maart geeft wat meer context bij die transfer:
Who is Igor Thiago? How long have Brentford tracked him? Is he Ivan Toney’s replacement?
By Jay Harris
Mar 1, 2024
There is a lot of uncertainty swirling around Brentford at the moment.
Matthew Benham has owned the club since 2012 but is open to selling a minority or a majority stake. Despite Ivan Toney’s timely return from an eight-month ban for breaching the Football Association’s betting rules, they are on a dreadful run of form which has seen them lose 10 of their last 12 matches.
On Monday, The Athletic revealed Everton’s 10-point deduction for breaking the Premier League’s profit and sustainability rules (PSR) had been reduced to six points, which pushed Brentford below them in the table and closer to the relegation zone. Hours later, they lost 4-2 to West Ham United and Thomas Frank said his side “did not hit a good level — collectively and individually”.
Frank claimed Everton’s situation was not a distraction, but captain Christian Norgaard said “someone is sitting with a calculator and putting in points, taking away points” and “it’s messing with people’s lives”.
The only positive news in the past couple of weeks was the announcement that Igor Thiago will join the club on a five-year contract from Club Bruges on July 1 in a deal worth €36.5million (£31.2m; $46.1m) including add-ons. Thiago will become the most expensive signing in Brentford’s history, eclipsing the £23m they paid for Nathan Collins last summer, and represents the biggest sale for a Belgian side.
Brentford confirmed Thiago’s signing two weeks after the January transfer window closed. They spent the final few days of the window trying to complete a deal for Thiago’s team-mate Antonio Nusa, but the move broke down due to concerns raised in his medical. The sudden pivot to Thiago caught everybody by surprise.
Brentford’s recruitment team have committed a large amount of money to a striker who was playing for Bulgarian side Ludogorets’ reserves two years ago. Thiago’s ascent has been rapid and now he has the small task of replacing Toney.
Thiago was born in Gama, a satellite town just outside the Brazilian capital Brasilia that was also once home to Kaka. When he was 13, his father passed away. Thiago supported his mother, Maria, who worked as a rubbish collector, by taking a job in the local supermarket and helping people carry their groceries home. Any spare money he earned would be spent on bus tickets to go to football training.
He joined Vere (currently in Brazil’s second tier) at the age of 16 and then moved to Cruzeiro’s academy in 2019, making his senior debut at the age of 18 in a state league match against Boa Esporte Clube. The forward only scored four times in 43 appearances for Cruzeiro in the Brazilian second division before he moved to Ludogorets in March 2022.
Although Brentford have not signed Thiago directly from Brazil, South America is a market they have been paying greater attention to in the past few years. In January 2022, they thought they had completed a deal to sign full-back Vanderson from Brazilian club Gremio, but he changed his mind at the last minute and joined Monaco instead. Brentford have been monitoring Thiago since his time with Cruzeiro and their interest only grew when he started scoring in Europe. Overall, Brentford collect data on 85,500 players competing in leagues around the world.
Thiago made a few appearances for Ludogorets’ reserves before stepping up into the first-team squad. He came off the bench and scored on his debut in a 5-0 victory over CSKA Sofia in April 2022. A year later, he scored an 11-minute hat-trick in an 8-1 win against Botev Vratsa. In total, he scored 21 goals and recorded 11 assists in 55 appearances for Ludogorets, helping them win the title twice.
Thiago joined Club Bruges last summer in an €8m deal — eight months later they have quadrupled their original investment. The deal was completed in May 2023, but before it was publicly announced in June, Brentford expressed their interest. After discovering he had already agreed to move to Belgium, Brentford pledged to monitor his progress.
The 22-year-old scored four times in six league matches at the start of the season before his momentum stalled. He failed to score in nine successive games and Club Bruges only won once.
Since the middle of November, he has been simply unstoppable. Thiago scored four times in the group stages of the Europa Conference League, including twice in a 5-0 victory over Turkish side Besiktas, as Club Bruges topped their group. In the Belgian top-flight, Thiago has scored 12 times in his last 10 appearances, although he was sent off in a 1-1 draw with Cercle Bruges on February 18.
Ronny Deila, Club Bruges’ head coach, explained he needed time to adapt to a new environment. “A lot had to do with the pace that he was not used to here,” Deila said in January. “Defenders hate playing against him these days. He presses non-stop, runs all the time and kicks them. Everything Thiago does is better balanced today.”
Thomas Frank and technical director Lee Dykes travelled to Lille in December for a meeting with Thiago and his camp, which lasted nearly two hours. They had analysed 45 of the forward’s performances and discussed what his best attributes were and where he could improve. Frank gave a detailed presentation of how he would fit in with the rest of the team and Thiago was impressed by the pitch. The pursuits of Nusa and Thiago were not linked — they play in different positions.
Brentford acted quickly to sign him because they know there is a strong possibility Toney will leave in the summer. The England international has spoken about his desire to play “for a top club fighting for titles” and has attracted interest from Arsenal and Chelsea.
Brentford have missed out on key targets before when they have waited and watched their values soar out of their price range; Brennan Johnson and Mykhailo Mudryk spring to mind. Brentford have paid a premium for Thiago, but if he maintains his current form, then they have potentially saved themselves from forking out more money on a deal in the summer.
The prospect of Thiago joining sooner was raised, but the forward wants to help Club Bruges progress in the Europa Conference League — they face Norwegian side Molde in the round of 16.
Thiago, who holds a Bulgarian passport, was hoping to represent Brazil at the Olympics, which takes place across July and August, but they failed to qualify, which means he will be available for all of Brentford’s pre-season.
Since he made his comeback in the 3-2 victory over Nottingham Forest on January 20, Toney has scored four times in seven appearances. Last season, only Erling Haaland (36) and Harry Kane (30) scored more than him (20) in the Premier League.
Toney’s value to Thomas Frank extends beyond his goalscoring ability. The 27-year-old is excellent at winning aerial duels, holding the ball up and linking with Bryan Mbeumo, Yoane Wissa and Neal Maupay.
When you compare Thiago and Toney directly, using data for Toney from last season as it is a bigger sample size, what immediately stands out is progressive passing. Toney scores higher than Thiago, indicating that he attempts a lot of passes 10 metres up the pitch per attacking touch.
The forward’s assist for Josh Dasilva in a 2-0 victory over West Ham in December 2022 is a prime example of this.
Thiago focuses most of his work in the penalty area — which is indicated by his high receptions in the opposition box — and as he plays for a more possession-dominant side in Belgium, he might have to adapt his game. Thiago is better when it comes to ball retention and his impressive scores in defensive metrics will be particularly pleasing for Frank, who demands his forwards lead the press.
According to fbref.com, Thiago’s non-penalty xG per shot in the league is around 0.23, indicating the opportunities that fall his way are normally big chances. This season, 6.6 touches in the box per game suggest he’s a big presence who can move well in those valuable areas. At 6ft 3ins (190.5cm), he is a good aerial target, winning 37.5 per cent of his 120 aerial duels this campaign, although Toney won 48.2 per cent of his 226 last season.
Mark Flekken likes the option of going direct from goal kicks — this led to Maupay’s goal in the 3-1 defeat to Manchester City last month — and Thiago’s physicality will be vital.
Brentford fans will be sad to wave goodbye to Toney, who will go down as one of the best players in their history. Yet they can take comfort in the fact a replacement with huge potential has already been secured.
Ik blijf toch met gevoel zitten dat het voor hem allemaal te snel gaat. Voor zijn ontwikkeling had ik hem liever nog wat langer bij een club als ons gezien. Niet het gevoel dat hij klaar is om met zo’n prijskaartje op zijn schouders in de beste competitie ter wereld te knokken. Het niet scoren weegt zelfs nu al overduidelijk op hem.
Heb het gevoel dat we als club een mega deal gedaan hebben maar of Thiago er zelf goed mee is sportief daar mag hij me in verrassen.
Gisteren toch ook weer ijzersterk als kapstok vooraan in de ploeg. Zeer hard gewerkt, lastpak geweest voor Antwerp en opnieuw enorm veel ballen bijgehouden waardoor we als ploeg kunnen opschuiven.
