Brentford [UK], August 18 (ANI): Bretford left out their star forward Ivan Toney from their squad against Crystal Palace on Sunday due to the ongoing “transfer interest.”
During Brentford’s 2-1 win over Crystal Palace on Sunday in the Premier League, Toney was left out of the squad amid ongoing speculation over a possible move to Saudi Arabia.
Brentford manager Thomas Frank dropped a possible hint that they could be looking towards a life without the English forward.
“A lot of things are going on with Ivan, especially with transfers. There’s a lot of transfer interest. Because of all that, we’ve decided not to include him in the squad. I can’t give too much away the day before. Of course, Ivan is a top player, we all know that. He has been fantastic for us for four years, but we showed last season we can cope without him,” Frank told Sky Sports.
The Brentford head coach was also quizzed if Toney had already played his last game for the club and replied, “Who knows? There is interest; it’s not close.”
Despite missing Toney’s services, Brentford began their Premier League season with a 2-1 win over Crystal Palace.
Brentford survived an early scare after Eberechi Eze thought he had scored the opening goal from a free-kick. However, referee Sam Barrott had already blown the whistle for a foul before the ball crossed the goal line.
Crystal Palace’s frustration increased as, four minutes later, Brentford scored the opening goal, and Bryan Mbeumo effortlessly found the back of the net to make the scoreline 1-0.
In the second half, Ethan Pinnock failed to sort out his feet and ended up diverting the ball into the back of his net, making the scoreline 1-1.
Crystal Palace’s hopes of sealing a turnaround were crushed when Odsonne Edouard’s strike was denied by a narrow offside flag.
Yoane Wissa scored the winning goal in the 76th minute for Brentford to seal a 2-1 win over Crystal Palace. (ANI)
