Wissa to be ‘welcomed back’ says Andrews as Brentford boss discusses striker’s future | OneFootball

Brentford boss Keith Andrews says he is looking forward to welcoming back Yoane Wissa to his squad amid interest in the striker from other clubs.

Wissa, who scored 19 Premier League goals for Brentford last season, has been the subject of interest from Newcastle United and Nottingham Forest this summer.

The 28-year-old, who has one year plus an option for a further year left on his contract, left Brentford’s training camp in Portugal last month amid uncertainty around his future.

He was left out of Andrews’ squad which beat west London rivals QPR 1-0 in a pre-season friendly on Saturday, and speaking to Hayters after the game, Andrews said: “Where it’s at is, in a nutshell, is there’s interest in Yoane.

“As everybody knows, he came back from the tour in Lisbon, which we felt was the right decision for Yoane.

“We have to respect his position and the fact that it can be stressful, emotional.

“I think that’s only natural for players. I think if you say anything different, you’re not living in the real world. But for us, it’s really simple. He’s a little bit behind in his fitness, he’s training very, very hard at the moment at the training ground and we look forward to welcoming him back into the group.”

On whether he is hoping Wissa will be part of his squad for next season, Andrews added: “Having the best players in the building would always be a bonus, yes.

“I deal with the football side of things. I’m very comfortable with Yoane at the moment, phenomenal respect for him as an individual, as a person, very understanding of the situation.”

Brentford have already lost key players Christian Norgaard and Bryan Mbeumo this summer, who joined Arsenal and Manchester United respectively.

They have moved to bring in experienced midfielder Jordan Henderson following his departure from Ajax, and have also signed attacking midfielder Antoni Milambo from Feyernood as well as goalkeeper Caoimhin Kelleher from Liverpool.

Brentford are keen to add to their attack before the transfer window shuts, with Ipswich Town attacker Omari Hutchinson among those of interest.

But Andrews is also confident of other members of his squad stepping up, such striker Igor Thiago and attacking midfielder Fabio Carvalho, who both struggled with injuries last season.

“If you look at those two in particular, the way they’ve come back after difficult seasons last year, I would say, for different reasons,” he said.

“Obviously, Thiago, with his injury, didn’t play anywhere near the amount of football, unfortunately, that we and he wanted him to. Fabio, again, injured towards the end of the season, and he’s someone that I have a lot of respect for, a lot of admiration for.

“I think both of those players will play big parts for us this season.”