Seconds before the curtain came down on the 2025/26 season, Brentford had a golden chance to qualify for Europe. They were drawing 1-1 with Liverpool at Anfield and knew that one goal would be enough to finish seventh and secure Europa League football. In the 10th minute of added time, Mikkel Damsgaard dropped the ball off to Vitaly Janelt on the left-hand side of the penalty area.

The midfielder hit a cross first time that curled in the most inviting way to the centre of the box. Kevin Schade was waiting for it, but Dango Ouattara got there first - and steered it off target. Keith Andrews put his head in his hands and sank to his knees.

His first season as a head coach had nearly ended in the most perfect way. "I felt that epitomised the journey we'd been on last season, with how we started the season, how we grew into the season," he says, reflecting on that moment just over three months on. "Everybody was so engrossed in our journey and gave absolutely everything. There was no shame at all from not getting into Europe, but it whetted the appetite pretty nicely for how we would do things going into pre-season." "I sat on holiday and had a chance to think about things with immense pride at what we'd achieved. The next thought, very quickly, was how and where we go again." Speaking to Sky Sports that day, he promised improvement in 2026/27. "This is a baseline," he said. "We'll continue to push hard." Around a fortnight after that Sunday at Anfield, Andrews was back at base. "There's amazing thinking time you don't normally get on a weekly basis to plan and look at things in a more forensic way," he says. "You look to improve how we train, how we prepare, what the squad feels like, what the dynamic feels like.

Everything where you feel we can get a little bit better." "I felt like we didn't need huge meetings about what this season will be, I just felt it was there day-to-day. You could smell it, you could feel it." The first major change came on June 12 with the appointment of his former Republic of Ireland team-mate Damien Duff as his assistant. "He's an unbelievable support for me on a daily basis. You've got to be very impactful in your role and whatever responsibilities you have and Damien is certainly that." The squad planning stage came next and, after an intense summer in 2025, this one was a lot less so.

Star players Bryan Mbeumo and Christian Norgaard were sold to Manchester United and Arsenal respectively, while Yoane Wissa's eventual departure to Newcastle was protracted and disruptive. There were no headline sales this year. In fact, the only first-team exits were those of Ethan Pinnock - who only played four times in the Premier League last season - and Frank Onyeka - who had spent the best part of two seasons away from w...