KEITH ANDREWS responded to Martin O’Neill branding him a “vitrolic critic” of him during his spell as Ireland manager. O’Neill levied the accusation in response to the

Keith Andrews has opened up on the risks he has taken in his career that have led to him becoming the new Brentford head coach.Andrews has replaced Thomas Frank in charge of the Bees, who departed

Brentford have appointed Mehmet Ali and Neil MacFarlane as first-team assistant coaches as Keith Andrews ' backroom team takes shape. Ali arrives in west London with a burgeoning reputation after three seasons in charge of Arsenal Under-21s, where he helped develop the likes of Ayden Heaven, Myles Lewis-Skelly and Ethan Nwaneri.

It means Brentford, who were among the first clubs to appoint a dedicated set-piece coach when they hired Gianni Vio in 2015, are once again in the market for a set-piece specialist, having just last year appointed Andrews to replace Chelsea-bound Bernardo Cueva.

My conscience would be very clean in terms of where that came from,” Andrews said, reflecting on the criticism he dished out in his punditry days. “Ireland was the only thing I supported as a kid growing up.

The decision to promote Keith Andrews was not taken lightly. Andrews, a former Republic of Ireland international and Brentford’s set-piece coach for the past season, emerged as the preferred candidate, his internal knowledge and clear rapport with the squad counting in his favour.