Brentford begin life in the Premier League against Arsenal tonight as the new season gets under way. The Bees are back in the top flight of English football after more than 70 years away, and are hoping to make an immediate impact in a London derby to raise the curtain on the 2021/22 Premier League campaign in front of a packed house, as full stadiums return.
Brentford came up through the play-offs fired by the goals of striker Ivan Toney, and Thomas Frank has added to his squad with the signing of Norwegian centre-back Kristoffer Ajer, Nigerian midfielder Frank Onyeka and winger Yoane Wissa. “We are proud, we are excited, we can’t wait – but we want to go out there and prove ourselves. The players are elite sportsmen and we, as staff, want to win. There is no satisfaction in getting into the Premier League and doing badly.”
Arsenal have added England international defender Ben White to their squad for £50m but are still on the hunt for attacking reinforcements and a goalkeeper too. Pierre Emerick Aubameyang and Alexandre Lacazette are both unavailable tonight through illness, but Mikel Arteta will be keen to get off to a good start after a mixed campaign last year. Follow all the action below.
