Brentford manager Thomas Frank has ruled out star striker Ivan Toney, who is a target for both Arsenal and Chelsea, leaving the club during the January transfer window.
Toney will imminently return to action from an eight-month ban issued in May for breaching football betting rules. He was one of the Premier League’s top goalscorers last season, netting 20 times for the Bees and outscored only by Erling Haaland (36) and Harry Kane (30).
Brentford had been doing fine in his absence, sitting ninth in the table in early November. But seven losses in their last eight league games, including the last five in a row, to plummet down the standings, suggesting it is a welcome time for Toney’s return.
“The very short answer, yes,” was Frank’s response when asked on Thursday if Toney would be staying put this month. “He is a Brentford player, he is here. Clearly we miss a few offensive players, I can’t see why we would sell him and I would love to have him for a longer time.”
Referencing that any decision in the future would always lies with director of football Phil Giles and owner Matthew Benham, the Dane added: “It needs to be an unbelievable price. So he will stay here.”
90min reported in November that the “unbelievable price” is in excess of £80m, a figure which came as a shock to Toney. He is understood to be keen to move on and has previously informed Brentford of his desire to take on a new challenge in this transfer window. Arsenal and Chelsea have each even held early talks with his representatives over a prospective deal.
90min has also reported that Toney is open to signing a new Brentford contract if it helps facilitate a mutually beneficial transfer in the future. The 27-year-old will enter the final 12 months of his current deal at the end of the season, which will hurt his value as he nears becoming a free agent.
With Brentford hoping to protect his market value by agreeing a longer-term contract, he would seek a release clause as part of a new deal that will smooth his possible exit, as well as securing a pay rise. It is worth noting that Toney hasn’t penned new terms since he joined the Bees as a Championship club in 2020 and he had spent the preceding few years playing in League One.
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