Latest news with #SaïdBenrahma
The Guardian
2 days ago
- Sport
- The Guardian
Thomas Frank gave Brentford fans so much for so long – we will truly miss him
Don't cry because it's over, smile because it happened. Thomas Frank is no longer Brentford's manager and that's not easy to write. We knew the day was drawing near but it's still a bitter pill to swallow. It feels like a break-up, a one-sided one where we do not get the chance to ask why and how. And the grief supporters are experiencing is because we were so emotionally invested in a partnership that brought us so much joy in the near seven years we had together. Rewind to October 2018, when Frank was appointed as Dean Smith's successor, and not many of us would have thought we would now be looking forward to a fifth campaign in the top flight. There is much to be grateful to Frank and his team for. They brought us the fabled BMW (Saïd Benrahma, Bryan Mbeumo and Ollie Watkins); they broke our playoff hoodoo at the 10th time of asking to take us to the Premier League; they set club records and beat some of the best teams in the land. It really has been quite the ride. Friday 13 August 2021; Brentford took on Arsenal under the lights, with television cameras broadcasting our first game in the Premier League. Frank made his entrance, arms waving, urging fans young and old to bring the noise. They delivered, as did the team. We had announced our arrival with a 2-0 win, and we've not been lower than 16th since, which is some achievement for a side expected to go straight back down. Frank would often bring up the 'we're just a bus stop in Hounslow' chant in our early years back in the top division. It was self-deprecating, a way to take ownership of how QPR supporters had mocked us a few years before, and its use by the manager showed he got it and he got us. Likewise we got him. That bond came from the culture cultivated at the club. A them-against-us mentality. We do not have the financial riches many in the Premier League have so we have had to do things differently in order to compete; using data as well as traditional methods to scout the lower leagues for the next big thing. We were also one of the first clubs in the top flight to employ a set-piece coach and a throw-in coach. It's the Brentford way; a method of finding an edge. We cannot challenge the giants in wealth or stature but we can be smarter than them. Hence Frank working out pretty quickly that the brand of football that got us promoted was not going to work in the Premier League. Certainly not straight away. So in the first few years after coming up we played a dogged style, balls over the top to maximise the strengths of Ivan Toney. Yet one of Frank's biggest assets is his ability to adapt, to mix things up. So in more recent seasons we have pressed from the front but, when the occasion has required it, also sat back and waited for our chance to counterattack. What has always remained, though, is hard work right across the team. That comes from the manager. Belief is another of Frank's strengths. He puts trust in his players and they repay him with performances on the pitch. For instance, when Toney was not named in the England squad for the last World Cup in Qatar, the very next game he scored a brace against Manchester City at the Etihad Stadium to earn us a much-deserved win. The conversations around the importance of Toney to us and not England, instigated by Frank, would no doubt have been key to ensuring there was fire in the striker's belly. And when Toney left for Saudi Arabia last summer, the Brazilian Igor Thiago came in as his replacement. But he got injured in pre-season so someone else was required to fill the No 9 role. Up stepped Yoane Wissa with 19 goals, his best league return, alongside tributes to the love and support Frank had shown him in the buildup to the campaign. It was, from Wissa, a clear testament to the very human qualities of the man in charge. A manager's lifespan is now around two years. We were never meant to have almost seven with Frank. So what was intended to be a short-term relationship with no strings attached became long term and meaningful. It is also now at an end. We were not ready to say goodbye, not with so much still to be achieved. It will also take some time getting used to not seeing Frank in the home dugout, and it will be even stranger to see him in that of another team. Take care of him, Tottenham – and thanks for the memories, Thomas. Natalie Sawyer is a broadcaster and lifelong Brentford supporter.
Yahoo
30-04-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
Saïd Benrahma's move from Lyon to Neom confirmed
Saïd Benrahma's (29) permanent move from Olympique Lyonnais to Neom SC has been confirmed after the latter club confirmed their promotion to the Saudi Pro League. Benrahma left Lyon in January, just 12 months after joining the club, to join Neom in the Saudi second division. That loan deal included an obligation to make the move permanent in the event that promotion was secured. Neom were officially promoted on Tuesday and so the Algeria international's stay at the club will be extended. Advertisement L'Équipe understands that Lyon will receive €12m in the deal, whilst there is also a potential further €3m in bonuses. The winger has played 11 games since making the move to Saudi Arabia, scoring four goals and registering six assists. During his 12-month stint with Les Gones, Benrahma played a key role in the club's push towards the UEFA Europa League places, netting six goals and registering 10 assists. GFFN | Luke Entwistle
See - Sada Elbalad
27-03-2025
- Business
- See - Sada Elbalad
Olympique Lyonnais Still Face Relegation down to Ligue 2 Threats
Rana Atef Ligue 1 side Olympique Lyonnais are still facing the threat of relegation down to Ligue 2, according to a financial report from L'Équipe. The prestigious French outlet asserted that despite the club's winter transfer window, they still need to make savings to meet the DNCG's requirements and prevent relegation down to Ligue 2. In November, Lyon were handed a provisional relegation to the second tier as well as a transfer ban and supervision of their wages after the clubs's debt reportedly rose from €458 million to €508 million. So, they made an active winter transfer work where they sold some of their highest earners, as Saïd Benrahma, Anthony Lopes, and Maxence Caqueret. L'Équipe added that the winter sales, as well as the departures of Orel Mangala and Dejan Lovren in the summer, have freed up an estimated €1.7 million from their wage bill. The French outlet highlighted that Lyon still have work to do. read more Japan Stun Spain 2-1 to Qualify for World Cup Last 16 World Cup 2022: Get to Know Confirmed Line-ups of Japan and Spain Group E Decider Saudi Arabia Bid Farewell to World Cup after 2-1 Loss to Mexico Tunisia Achieve Historic Win over France but Fail to Qualify Tunisia to Clash against France in World Cup Sports Get to Know Squad of Group D Teams in World Cup Sports Al Ahly Gift EGP 70,000 to Players After Claiming Egyptian Super Cup Title Sports Bencharki Hits First 2 Goals with Al Jazira Since Leaving Zamalek Sports Arsenal Possible Line-up for Nottingham Forest News Egypt confirms denial of airspace access to US B-52 bombers News Ayat Khaddoura's Final Video Captures Bombardment of Beit Lahia News Australia Fines Telegram $600,000 Over Terrorism, Child Abuse Content Lifestyle Pistachio and Raspberry Cheesecake Domes Recipe Videos & Features Bouchra Dahlab Crowned Miss Arab World 2025 .. Reem Ganzoury Wins Miss Arab Africa Title (VIDEO) News Ireland Replaces Former Israeli Embassy with Palestinian Museum News Israeli PM Diagnosed with Stage 3 Prostate Cancer Lifestyle Maguy Farah Reveals 2025 Expectations for Pisces News Prime Minister Moustafa Madbouly Inaugurates Two Indian Companies Sports Neymar Announced for Brazil's Preliminary List for 2026 FIFA World Cup Qualifiers
