Thomas Frank has explained that Halil Dervisoglu was left out against Middlesbrough as part of an effort to get him more match action.
Dervisoglu was expected to be among Brentford’s substitutes for the game at Griffin Park, where Frank’s side won 3-2 to boost their promotion hopes.
The Turkish forward, who made his Championship debut last month, instead played for Brentford’s B team.
Boss Frank explained: “It’s part of a clear strategy. There’s different pathways to get into the team.
“Halil is in a good place, we just thought it was the best way to play match minutes.”
Frank praised his side for keeping their cool after Middlesbrough twice equalised in an action-packed game.
Brentford eventually prevailed courtesy of Ollie Watkins’ late winner.
Frank declared: “What character and attitude in this team. We kept going with a cool head and discipline in our positions.
“This was a big one for us. We need to understand there will be games where we go 1-0 down or it’s a draw and we need to keep going, keep staying level and cool and keep our emotions, which they did very well.”
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