Brentford aiming to produce ‘world class’ players

Brentford aim to be producing “world-class players” and a clear style of play throughout the club, development squad coach Flemming Pedersen has said.

Pedersen’s comments come after 19-year-old Tom Field made his professional debut in the 3-0 win over Fulham on Saturday, while fellow youth teamers Reece Cole and James Ferry have been first-team substitutes this season.

Speaking to the club’s website, Pedersen – who joined the Bees in the summer as head of football philosophy – outlined the changes he had made to the way youngsters train.

He said: “We wanted to accelerate learning and education with the purpose of developing world class players.

“In the near future, we hope the best will play at Premier League level with the rest having good careers in the Football League.

“We have also implemented a clear style of play based on objectives that run through the club, our philosophy.

“The training philosophy is also linked to this with deliberate practice, tactical repetition and clear feedback.

“We have a large focus on education and analysis. We dedicate up to an hour every day to it and outline to the players why we train in the way we do and what they will get from it.

“We also get the players to analyse themselves and the best players around the world, looking at ways they can improve.

“The players are also with us more. Since January we have tried to have only one day off a week. This means the players are living football rather than just playing football.

“We have also tried to play and train with more intensity. Our analysis shows our players are replicating what first-team players do in terms of sprinting, high-speed running and total distance as well as other measures.”