Brentford will play their final pre-season friendly against Lille on Saturday.
The French outfit will be welcomed to the Gtech Community Stadium this weekend, giving Thomas Frank one final chance to see his Brentford side in action before the new Premier League season gets underway.
Frank will likely name a strong team, and will be desperate for impressive performance to round off their pre-season schedule.
The Bees’ friendly games so far have seen them face Boreham Wood, and Premier League rivals Aston Villa, Fulham, and Brighton. Brentford are yet to win in pre-season, and have conceded nine goals across the four matches.
Frank will demand more from his team at both ends of the pitch against Lille.
Damsgaard’s time to shine
One player who needs to step up this season is Mikkel Damsgaard. The 23-year-old cost £16.7 million to bring to the club and failed to live up to his price tag last season.
With Ivan Toney absent due to his ban, Brentford will need to be more creative and clinical than ever going forward this season. There has been a dearth of creativity in central areas since Christian Eriksen’s departure, and Damsgaard must make that playmaking role his own this season. He needs to start by showing he can effectively pull the strings in attack against Lille.
If Damsgaard doesn’t show some improvement, and end product, soon, then Frank will seriously start to worry that their money was wasted.
Collins to provide solidity
Elsewhere, the Bees must tighten up at the back. Nathan Collins needs to settle in quickly. Minutes against the Ligue 1 opposition on Saturday will help. Frank has already referred to the centre-back as a “perfect Brentford player,” and he may well prove to be just that.
Frank’s side have been porous at the back in recent weeks though, and a poor start to the season defensively could derail their whole campaign. Collins needs to take this chance to step in and steady the ship.