Damsgaard is NOT fit enough to start against United, reveals Frank

Brentford’s new midfielder Mikkel Damsgaard is NOT fit enough to start against Man United, reveals Thomas Frank… but the 22-year-old could make his Bees debut from the bench against compatriot Christian Eriksen

Mikkel Damsgaard recently joined Brentford in a deal worth £11.8 million
The Danish midfielder will not start against Manchester United this weekend
Bees manager Thomas Frank has concerns over his lack of fitness
The 22-year-old could still make his Premier League debut from the bench

Thomas Frank admitted new signing Mikkel Damsgaard will not be fit enough to start for Brentford against Manchester United on Saturday.

The 22-year-old is expected to be included among the substitutes and could be in line for a debut off the bench.

‘He hasn’t played or trained with the team for the last 10 days,’ Frank said.

Brentford’s new signing Mikkel Damsgaard will not start against Manchester United

‘That’s not to say he can’t play 10, 15, or 20 minutes at a good level for this game. He is not ready to start. He had an absolutely perfect medical with nothing to worry about.’

The Bees go into the match off the back of a comeback 2-2 draw at Leicester where they fought back from two goals behind to secure the point. However, Frank does not believe there is a good time to play United.

He said: ‘I don’t think there is an ideal time. In general I don’t believe in if it’s a perfect situation to play them in or a bad situation to play them in.

Thomas Frank has concerns over the midfielder’s fitness as he has not trained a lot

‘But one thing is for sure, they’ve got a new manager, a brilliant manager, I think he’s done a fantastic job in his earlier jobs, so they’re very interested in doing everything they can to make it a success with the players.

‘They lost the first game, so if you lost a game the most common response (is) to really want to improve and do well. So it’s going to be extremely difficult tomorrow.

Christian Eriksen spent half of last season at Brentford after being unable to play in Italy due to the implantable defibrillator fitted after his cardiac arrest at Euro 2020.

The Denmark international helped guide Brentford to Premier League safety before moving on to Old Trafford this summer, and Frank is looking forward to a reunion.

The clash will be the first time Christian Eriksen faces his former side after joining United

‘I am looking forward to seeing him again,’ Frank said. ‘I look forward to giving him a hug and asking him how his family is, then I look forward to competing against him on the pitch and afterwards hopefully we will have three points and he will have zero, but we will see.

‘I think no doubt with his qualities, you could also see it in the last game – I know he was used in two different positions during the game.

‘Obviously his quality on the ball is key and we know we can’t give him too much time because he can see the ball between lines, he can see the ball behind and has the quality to put it on a string for any player.’

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