Keith Andrews

[nigel-harps1954]

If they finish top 10 it would be an incredible return for them.

[Exgrad]

Remember when anything good that happened under Ireland for Kenny was down to eustace or barry.

[Eirambler]

You could apply the same theory here in reverse though. Even a manager as talented a Andrews couldn't overcome the Stephen Kenny disasterclass...

My view is different though - I think that this success is as much (if not more) about Brentford as it is about Andrews. He's a useful cog that found himself in the right place at the right time, and with a top class striker and keeper signed for him by the club to help him on his way. But the subsequent fortunes of Dean Smith and Thomas Frank would suggest that Brentford is a club that is capable of making managers look better than they actually are.

[Exgrad]

you could and its true, all though Brentford identified Andrews as someone with potential and got him in the building as set piece coach so he would get familiar with set up pre making jump to manager. He was nearly a figure of fun in Ireland at that point, or at best irrelevant.

[elatedscum]

you could and its true, all though Brentford identified Andrews as someone with potential and got him in the building as set piece coach so he would get familiar with set up pre making jump to manager. He was nearly a figure of fun in Ireland at that point, or at best irrelevant.

it's worth reading through the thread. This place was genuinely one of the most sympathetic places to him.

When he got the set piece job:
"I'm very sorry. No one deserves that"
"Visions of the Brentford defence standing in a wall at the edge of the box for hours listening to Andrews talk absolute rhubarb"


And then when he got the big job:

"with his lack of experience in a pretty unforgiving environment, it's more likely than not that he won't be a success"
"Its good to see an Irish manager getting a shot at the Premier league but it must be a bit of a sickener for the likes of Kenny and Bradser that the guy probably the least qualified of the 3 of them gets a shot at it"
"I think around the Greek games where he was naive in press conferences and Poyet basically laughed at him, did a lot to damage his reputation in my eyes anyway. He was never a genuine contender when the Irish Manager saga was on going because of it I think."
"Nothing on show today to alleviate the fears held by Irish fans about this appointment. It's just one game but their fixture list for the next while looks awful"
"Brentford were poor and seem to be in trouble - they have lost some big players and haven't replaced them"
"Brentford were constantly getting pinned in. What possession they had in the first half consisted of slow, lateral balls across the back line as they were incapable of moving through the lines. Where have we seen that before …"

[SkStu]

I always had time for Andrews and will always wish him well but I think that their performances and results this season, along with Franks performance at Spurs, proves true a lot of what EG has claimed. Brentford have set themselves up in such a way that they are more than a manager, more than a star striker. Their model for recruitment and succession planning on the player and coaching side is almost impeccable. I also happen to think that Andrews is outperforming where Frank would be if he were still in place having lost Wissa, Mbuemo and Norgaard and only truly upgraded in other positions with Outtara and Kells. Thiago was signed the season before and Frank didn't use him much.