Brentford duo 'closer' to return from injury, says Frank | OneFootball

Brentford head coach Thomas Frank has given an update on Bees duo Aaron Hickey and Igor Thiago, who are nearing a return to first-team action.

Hickey has been unavailable since October 2023, while Thiago has played just four times since his move from Club Brugge in the summer, with the most recent of those coming against Newcastle in December.

Frank was also pleased that a number of first-team players featured for Brentford Under-21s against Sheffield Wednesday Under-21s on Monday in a 1-1 draw at Gtech Community Stadium, including Hakon Valdimarsson, Rico Henry, Ji-soo Kim, Michael Kayode, Mathias Jensen, Paris Maghoma, Yunus Konak and Gustavo Nunes.

"Everyone is available that was available last week for the Arsenal game," the Brentford head coach revealed.

"A few players got some valuable minutes playing on Monday - Rico, Mathias and Gustavo, among others.

"Also, Igor Thiago is getting closer and Aaron Hickey is getting closer, so it all looks good."

Looking to the clash with Brighton and Hove Albion on Saturday, Frank stated that it's one the Bees "need to win" if they want any chance of finishing in a European spot this term.

"We have plenty to aim for still," said the Dane. "The simple one to aim for is to just finish as high as possible, and everything is still there for us - a top-10 finish would be fantastic for the club.

"Everyone is speaking about Europe and that's tough - if we want any ambition about that, we need to win on Saturday, against a team that also needs to win on Saturday!

"It's going to be a good game."