Brentford head coach Thomas Frank has confirmed that Aaron Hickey will make his long-awaited return to the matchday squad for Sunday’s clash against Wolverhampton Wanderers at Molineux.
The Scotland international has not played for Brentford since October 2023, having suffered several setbacks in his recovery from a long-term hamstring injury.
Hickey stepped up his recovery with a goal for the B team in last week’s 6-1 win over Tottenham Hotspur Under-21s in the Robert Rowan Invitational trophy.
Frank has now revealed that Hickey is ready to return to a Premier League squad for the first time in 19 months.
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Frank confirms Hickey availability
“The team’s looking good. Everyone that was available for the last game is available again,” Frank told reporters in Friday’s pre-match press conference.
“One very positive thing – it’s taken a while, but we’ve got there in the end – Aaron Hickey will be involved in the squad on Sunday.
“I’m very pleased for him, he’s worked very hard, and this is a little bonus for him. He can then go into the summer, work hard, and come flying back into next season.”
While Hickey is set to make the squad, Frank has revealed that Ben Mee has already played his final game for the club ahead of his contract expiry at the end of June.
“One person who won’t be in the squad is Ben Mee. We gave a nice send-off to him after the Fulham game,” Frank added.
“We said a few nice words to him about what he has contributed over the last three years. It’s been a pleasure to work with him, and I wish him and his family all the best.”
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Who else will miss out?
In addition to Mee, Brentford will enter the final game of the season with Vitalty Janelt, who underwent surgery to solve a heel issue at the end of last month.
The Bees are also expected to be without the services of Josh Dasilva and Fabio Carvalho due to knee and shoulder injuries respectively.
Having collected 58 points from 37 matches, Brentford are in ninth place and three points adrift of Brighton & Hove Albion in eighth position.
The Bees have an outside chance of securing European qualification if they leapfrog Brighton and Chelsea finish seventh and win the Conference League.
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