Brentford’s Bryan Mbeumo and Yoane Wissa: What clubs might want the duo this summer?

Ollie Watkins. Ivan Toney. Are Bryan Mbeumo and Yoane Wissa next?

When club captain Ivan Toney left Brentford for Saudi Arabia’s Al Ahli for £33million ($44.12m) plus add-ons last summer, manager Thomas Frank turned to players already at the club.

With 38 Premier League goals this season combined, Mbeumo and Wissa have filled the Toney void brilliantly, contributing heavily to Brentford’s highest goal tally in the Premier League (65).

But Frank has said the club would be open to sell Mbeumo for “the right price” and, presumably, the same could be said of Wissa given both their contracts expire at the end of the 2025-26 season, though there is an option to extend for another year.

The possibility of retaining both could be boosted if Brentford finish eighth and claim an unlikely UEFA Conference League space via Chelsea winning the Conference League and finishing seventh. But with one game of the season remaining — an away tie at Wolverhampton Wanderers — one or both could have already played their last game at Gtech Community Stadium.

The question as the summer transfer window approaches is which clubs may be willing to pay the “right price” and have the need for Brentford’s forwards?

Bryan Mbeumo

Mbeumo, who turns 26 in August, has been at Brentford for six years, joining for £5.8million ($7.77m) from French club Troyes, where he made his debut at 18 in Ligue 1.

During that time Brentford have gone from a Championship side to mid-table in the Premier League and Mbeumo has thrived as both a striker, in the 3-5-2 formation, and as a winger in a 4-3-3 setup.

The graphic below shows his capabilities on both feet as a right-winger, where he most often played this season, cutting in as often as he goes outside.

The strength of his weaker right foot was highlighted against Fulham last weekend when he received the ball one-on-one against Calvin Bassey. The French-born Cameroon international received on to his left foot before shifting it onto his right, driving the ball across goal into the bottom corner.

Mbeumo is at his peak, so he should be seeking clubs where he will start games. That potentially rules out Arsenal (Bukayo Saka) and Liverpool (Mohamed Salah), who have stellar right-wing options already. Manchester United’s best attacking option is right-forward Amad, so signing Mbeumo would mean playing him elsewhere.

There is a chance, however, that those teams may bank on his positional versatility to boost their front lines.

Clubs who may be looking to upgrade their right-wing spot and already possess a strong striker and left-winger, and are therefore the most ideal fit, include Newcastle United and Tottenham Hotspur.

As is a requirement for both these clubs, Mbeumo works hard off the ball, even having played wing-back in previous years at Brentford. Newcastle have a track record of signing Premier League-proven talent in recent seasons, including Anthony Gordon and Harvey Barnes.

Mbeumo is not used to probing defences, like Manchester City and Chelsea sometimes do against low blocks. That’s not to say he is not capable of that, but he has shown he is great at receiving an out ball and sparking quicker attacking sequences closer to the style of Newcastle and Liverpool. Like Brentford, Newcastle have operated in a 4-3-3 and 3-5-2 most often this season.

Newcastle have had success with a right-footed right winger in Jacob Murphy, who has had a very good season (eight goals, 13 assists) firing crosses into Alexander Isak. Bringing in the left-footed Mbeumo could change the dynamics of the team but, as seen above, he is very comfortable on his weaker foot. Newcastle manager Eddie Howe has favoured left-footed right forwards before, like Miguel Almiron, now at Atalanta United.

Unai Emery is a manager who loves a left-footed right-winger, having signed Moussa Diaby and Leon Bailey during his time at Aston Villa. Like Mbeumo, Emery’s forwards in the 4-2-3-1 formation can be interchangeable and are capable of runs between the centre-back and full-back. The graphic below shows that Mbeumo has created goals from these areas.

If this were the NFL, a team like Manchester City might want to buy him for penalties alone. Mbeumo has gone 10 for 11 on penalties in the Premier League, with his only miss coming last weekend against Fulham. City have bad luck in this regard — Erling Haaland has missed three penalties this season and Omar Marmoush had one saved in the FA Cup final.

And, of course, there’s Chelsea, a team that always seems to be in pursuit of wingers.

Yoane Wissa

Wissa also arrived from France, in a £5million ($6.70m) move from Lorient in 2021. Due to his age — he turns 29 in September — he is likely to be available at a cheaper price than Mbeumo.

During Toney’s eight-month ban for breaking gambling rules and then departure from the club, Wissa transitioned from a winger to a striker as can be seen below.

Igor Thiago could compete for more game time next campaign if he remains injury free, but of strikers in the Premier League, Wissa (19 goals) has only been outscored by Chris Wood (20), Haaland (21) and Alexander Isak (23) this season.

The DR Congo international is rarely involved in build-up play, despite being capable of holding the ball up and linking with Mbeumo, as illustrated by his assist in Sunday’s 3-2 loss to Fulham. His key responsibility has been to make menacing runs into the box to finish opportunities, and his over-performance of xG — a measure of the quality of goalscoring chances — suggests he is an instinctive finisher.

Earlier in his Brentford career, Wissa gained a reputation for making an impact from the bench. That is a role he could play for a club looking to boost squad depth.

At Brentford, Wissa has often been afforded space to attack, facing few low blocks, but his movement has paid off in congested penalty areas too. Against Fulham, he benefited from a long throw-in situation by being the first to react to Christian Norgaard’s saved header for a simple tap-in.

Arsenal have scored a league-high 20 set-piece goals this season and might have wished they had Wissa on the end of Thomas Partey’s long throw-ins. Despite not fitting the mould in height for Mikel Arteta signings at 5ft 9 inches, or being the big-name striker they’re after, Wissa could be a good squad player.

Nottingham Forest had a £22million ($29.49m) bid rejected for Wissa in January, with Brentford’s valuation being significantly higher. The club may want to add another forward in the summer, with the 33-year-old Wood contracted until 2027 and Taiwo Awoniyi badly injured.

Wissa could still be on Forest’s radar as Nuno Espirito Santo values players who can operate in more than one role, often using all five of his substitutes during games. His time at Brentford shows Wissa could be comfortable as the lone striker in Forest’s 4-2-3-1 or play as a wide forward, and his mobility would be a strength for the Premier League’s most direct team.

(Top photo: Bryn Lennon/Getty Images)

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