Brentford are expecting to sell Ivan Toney this summer – manager Thomas Frank has revealed.
Toney was linked with a January move away from west London but Frank insisted no bids were received for the England striker.
The 27-year-old has recently returned to action after an eight-month ban for breaching Football Association gambling guidelines.
Frank had maintained throughout January that Toney, who made his England debut in 2023 and has hit 34 goals in 71 Premier League appearances, would stay put.
But now he seems to be bracing to lose one of his key men at the end of the season.
“It is relatively obvious that Ivan Toney will probably be sold this summer,” Frank told Danish magazine Tipsbladet.
“It can be ‘expensive’ to sell your best player, but conversely I also know that this summer he only has one year left on his contract with us.
“We also know what he is worth. I don’t think there are many strikers in the world who are better than him right now.”
Asked on transfer deadline day whether keeping Toney in January proved Brentford have grown as a club, Frank said: “I think with any player we have a contract in general so at the end of the day we decide if they leave or not.
“Of course money talks and we also know that we are a ‘selling’ club as you could call it – we know that is part of the strategy.”
Frank doubled down on that outlook in his Tipsbladet interview, adding: “I would prefer to keep Toney but one day it could be fun to see him in a top team.
“This winter, we actually had no bids for him, but it would surprise me if there aren’t a lot of clubs interested in him.”
Meanwhile, Brentford also confirmed Josh Dasilva has suffered another serious injury setback.
The 25-year-old has struggled with a number of issues in recent seasons and will now go back under the knife.
Josh Dasilva is to undergo surgery on a significant knee injury
You have all our support, @joshdasilva_ 🙏
— Brentford FC (@BrentfordFC) February 7, 2024
“Unfortunately, Josh suffered an injury in training over the weekend, while preparing for the Man City game,” head of medical Neil Greig told the club’s official website.
“Subsequent imaging has shown a significant injury to ligaments in his right knee, which will require surgery to repair.
“He’s previously shown an outstanding attitude to adversity and injury recovery, and we have absolute confidence in his capability to fully recovery from this setback.”