Rosler hails El Alagui after Bees cup win
Boss Uwe Rosler paid tribute to Farid El Alagui after the striker helped Brentford secure a place in the second round of the Capital One Cup.
El Alagui scored twice against Dagenham & Redbridge, with his last-minute winner clinching a 3-2 victory at Griffin Park.
It was a sweet moment for the Moroccan, who suffered a knee injury soon after his move from Falkirk and missed most of last season.
Rosler said: “What he went through since October – there were some dark days for him.
“He was here without his family and it was very tough, but he did not let it beat him.
“He came back last season and wanted to play in the play-off final. I left him out and he was disappointed, but he wasn’t fully fit.
“Now he is back I think we will see the best of him again – he will get back to where he was before.
“You know what you are going to get with Farid; an honest striker who wants to score at any cost.
“That’s why he scored so many goals in Scotland and why he scored those two goals for us tonight.”
Brentford recovered after a poor start, having found themselves behind after on-loan Cardiff defender Ben Nugent’s first-half own goal.
Tactical changes by Rosler made a difference, with El Alagui equalising and summer signing Martin Fillo putting the home side ahead before Dagenham hit back.
“The start was disappointing. We must learn from that,” said Rosler.
“I wanted us to control things with the three in midfield and things didn’t work as I’d hoped.
“I then put Martin Fillo as a second striker and Stuart Dallas in a more right-sided position and I felt that changed things.
“Then obviously there was the substitution with Farid. I wanted us to be stronger through the middle and he gave us that.”
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