Keith Andrews: Brentford's Rising Star Coach

Keith Andrews arrived at Brentford as the set-piece guy. He now looks like a man building a problem for the Premier League’s elite.

The former Blackburn and West Brom midfielder, capped 35 times by the Republic of Ireland, quietly built his coaching CV in the shadows. He learned his trade with Karl Robinson at MK Dons, then stepped into international football as Stephen Kenny’s assistant at both U21 and senior level. A spell alongside Chris Wilder at Sheffield United added another layer. By the time Brentford hired him as set-piece coach in 2023, he was well-travelled but still largely under the radar.

That changed in the summer of 2025.

With Thomas Frank heading to Tottenham, Brentford turned inward. No marquee name. No big foreign import. They handed the reins to Andrews, a promotion that stunned plenty around the league and raised more than a few eyebrows outside west London. It looked like a gamble.

It doesn’t feel like one now.

Andrews not only calmed early relegation talk last season, he shoved it aside. Brentford finished ninth, miles away from the drop and agonisingly short of European qualification. For a club many expected to slide after losing Frank and key players, it was a statement.

The target has shifted. Those European spots are no longer a dream; they’re the next step.

Andrews is tied down on a long-term deal through to 2032, a show of faith rarely seen in the modern game. The question is whether that contract ever runs its full course. If he keeps this trajectory, the so-called heavyweights will come.

One man who has no doubts is former Brentford striker Clinton Morrison. Speaking to GOAL on behalf of Freebets.com, he could barely contain his admiration.

“Amazing, amazing, amazing,” he said when asked about Andrews’ impact. “I think Brentford have a chance of, even this season, getting them outside spots of Europe. They missed out last season. And they could win a cup.”

Morrison had caught up with Andrews at the Birmingham-Brentford game and left even more convinced by the project taking shape.

“I just think Keith's done a fantastic job. He's got two players in every position,” Morrison said. “The boy who they signed, [Mamadou] Sangare, he could have easily gone to any of the top four teams. I think he's a special talent. He went to Brentford. He likes their project and they’ve got a good signing.”

That depth is no accident. Andrews has pushed Brentford’s recruitment into a new gear, layering experience on top of potential.

“He's got Callum Wilson’s experience - puts pressure on Thiago,” Morrison pointed out. “[Jaidon] Anthony, who they signed from Burnley, started the season well - puts pressure on [Dango] Ouattara, Kevin Schade, competition.”

Everywhere you look, there’s a battle for minutes. Even big-money arrivals are not guaranteed a place.

“They signed [El Hadji Malick] Diouf for 40 million from West Ham - can't get a game at the moment,” Morrison added. “Keane Lewis-Potter has been outstanding. So they have a lot of good players there at Brentford.”

This is the core of the Andrews effect: standards raised, comfort zones removed, a squad built to push itself.

“And yeah, I think Keith Andrews, he’s done a brilliant job,” Morrison said. “Considering last season, the players that they lost and losing Thomas Frank, everyone thought Brentford might get relegated.”

Instead, they surged. Now they’ve started this season “ever so well”, as Morrison put it, and the narrative around the club has flipped.

“Huge credit to Keith. And if he carries on going like that, there'll be a lot of other clubs higher up sniffing around him, for sure.”

Brentford backed the set-piece coach. They may soon be fighting to keep the manager.