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Ivan Toney is able to the identical impression made by Christian Eriksen when he returned to taking part in soccer following a cardiac arrest, in accordance to Brentford boss Thomas Frank.
The 27-year-old striker is obtainable for Brentford’s house recreation towards Nottingham Forest on Saturday after finishing an eight-month ban for breaking FA playing guidelines.
Frank is in pressing want of Toney discovering type shortly, along with his workforce on a run of 5 consecutive Premier League losses that has seen them drop to inside three factors of the underside three.
The membership beforehand benefited from providing Denmark worldwide Eriksen a route again into the sport after his collapse throughout a European Championship recreation towards Finland in June 2021.
Eriksen signed for Brentford eight months later after Italian rules prevented him from remaining at former membership Inter Milan.
The midfielder was instrumental in serving to the workforce pull away from the relegation zone and securing survival on their debut season within the division.
And Frank hopes the returning Toney can show equally talismanic for his ailing facet.
“He’s a player that will hit the ground running,” stated Frank. “I compare it a little bit to Eriksen. He wasn’t injured, it was a crazy thing that happened to him. But he hit the ground running and I expect the same thing from Ivan.
“He’s definitely played games in his career where there was more pressure on the game, like the play-off final (against Swansea in 2021) or semi-final, where there was much more at stake.
“Here there’s just a lot of noise around him. It’s whether he can leave it out there and just perform on the pitch.
“There’ll be a lot on it going into the game, but when he gets into his normal routine, he’s done it a thousand times. He’ll put the right sock on, then the left sock and then tie his boots, then he’ll be ready.”
I examine it just a little bit to Eriksen. He wasn’t injured, it was a loopy factor that occurred to him. But he hit the ground working and I count on the identical factor from Ivan
Thomas Frank
Defeat towards Forest could be Brentford’s eighth in 9 league video games and would go away them 4 factors adrift of Nuno Espirito Santo’s upwardly cell facet.
The workforce have received simply as soon as since early November and with a bunch of gamers unavailable by way of damage and worldwide commitments they danger being pulled right into a relegation struggle.
“Confidence is not through the roof because we don’t have the momentum,” stated Frank. “But in football the confidence is just one game away to change.
“It’s one good action, a little bit of momentum, a deflected shot going into the back of the net, and you see a different team. Then we get a boost by getting Ivan back, that gives something.
“All that added together. Hopefully we can come out with good confidence.”
Frank added that England worldwide Toney, who has been identified as a playing addict, has mirrored on the actions that led to him lacking the final 259 days for his workforce.
“He made a mistake, no doubt about that. He knows that. He’s been hard done by in general, in my opinion. But it’s in the past, and he’s focused on the game tomorrow.
“In a match he is always holding his hands up if he thinks there is something he should have done better. Sorry is a big word. If he could have done different I think he would have done, but we move on.”
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