Thomas Frank says Arsenal are now the best team in the world at scoring from set-pieces but believes his Brentford side have the tools to contain their threat.
The Gunners have earned a reputation for being the Premier League's most dangerous side from dead balls, with Mikel Arteta’s team scoring 32 goals from corners or free-kicks since the start of last season.
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Frank feels they have perfected the art and said: "Arsenal is the best set-piece team, not only in the Premier League but in the world right now.
“They are so aggressive and they are well coached. We are facing a very good Arsenal team. We know we need to play our 'A' game; not just in set-pieces but in every aspect.
"In a way, I think they've gone under the radar because there is so much talk about Manchester City and Manchester United - and Liverpool, of course, because they are doing fantastically. Also Chelsea who are maybe doing better than people expected.
"They [Arsenal] have performed consistently well. They look so competitive in every area. They defend well, they attack well, but we are at home, we’ll put a competitive team out there, and we’ll do whatever we can to try and win the game."
'We're good at defending corners'
Frank knows Brentford are well-equipped to deal with any Arsenal aerial assault that may come their way on New Year's Day.
Corners have been a powerful weapon this season but no side are better at defending them than the Bees, who have conceded only once from such situations all season.
"We are good at defending corners," the manager added. "As far as I know, we have only conceded from one corner so far in the Premier League this season, which was a short corner against AFC Bournemouth.
"We defend very well so we trust our own processes but, of course, [we have] huge respect for Arsenal and what they can come with."
Brentford return for Jover
One of the reasons for Arsenal's success is their set-piece coach Nicolas Jover.
The Frenchman spent three years at Brentford from 2016 and worked with Frank, before moving to Man City in 2019. Two years later, he reunited with Arteta at Arsenal.
Jover's talents have helped push the Gunners way out in front in Europe's top five leagues for goals from corners since the start of last season.
They have scored 24 - five more than Bundesliga clubs Bayern Leverkusen and Borussia Monchengladbach - with Man City and West Ham United being their nearest challengers in the Premier League with 16.
Arsenal's 32 goals from all set-pieces, excluding penalties, since the start of last season accounts for 25.4 per cent of their 126 Premier League goals.
Goals from corners since start of 2023/24 season
| Club | Goals |
| Arsenal | 24 |
|---|---|
| Bayern Leverkusen | 19 |
| Borussia Monchengladbach | 19 |
| Lyon | 16 |
| Man City | 16 |
| AC Milan | 16 |
| West Ham | 16 |
Only Everton, with 27 of their 55 goals coming from corners or free-kicks, have a greater dependency on set-pieces with 49.1 per cent.
Waiting on Flekken
Brentford's goalkeeper will of course be key to defending against Arsenal's set-pieces.
Mark Flekken remains an injury doubt after being withdrawn before half-time in the Bees' 0-0 draw at Brighton & Hove Albion, with what looked to be a muscle injury, but Frank has not ruled out his No 1 for New Year's Day.
Providing an injury update, the Brentford boss said: "Three players went off [at Brighton]. Christian Norgaard is no problem and can play against Arsenal; Ben Mee has a minor muscle injury and will be out for a couple of weeks.
"Mark Flekken is more positive. It's still too early to say he will play against Arsenal, but he can maybe, hopefully, be available.
"But I am in no doubt that Hakon Valdimarsson will be more than ready for his first Premier League start, if needed. He did very well against Brighton and I was very pleased with his performance."
Shutting down transfer speculation
The Brentford boss has a blunt response for any club hoping to lure Bryan Mbeumo away from the Gtech Community Stadium.
With the January transfer window opening on the day his side face Arsenal, there has been speculation about Mbeumo moving elsewhere.
When asked for his reaction to the possibility of clubs wanting to sign one of his most important players, Frank replied: "In January? I would say good luck!
"We love Bryan. He loves playing here. He has had a fantastic season, so nothing will happen."
As for his own plans regarding new signings, Frank said: "We will be ready to act if we need to. We have a very strong squad if everyone is fit, but we will assess it day-to-day.
"We will perhaps not doing anything early, but if things are not improved next month, then we will need to do something. But at the moment, I'm not too concerned."
