Rhian Brewster has been backed to leave Brentford’s much celebrated BMW on the hard shoulder today as Swansea City motor towards the Premier League.
The man who has helped Brewster become fine tuned for the first leg of the club’s Championship play-off at The Liberty Stadium is Andre Ayew – a decade older than the 20-year-old Liverpool loanee.
Together, Brewster and Ayew have scored 25 league goals – not quite at the level of Said Benrahma, Bryan Mbeumo and Ollie Watkins, who have been dubbed the BMW this season with a high performance 57 Championship goals between them for the Bees.
But Brewster’s 10 goals have come in just 20 matches since his January move and Ayew says: “Rhian has everything to play at the top level. He has goals, he has speed, he has power.
“He’s still young and so he has things to improve on, but when we are talking about a pure finisher and talent in front of goal, then he has it all. He has everything that a striker needs.
“He’s learning how to cope with playing when you’re tired, how to play with men, week-in, week-out out – because the Championship is like that – and he’s coped really, really well.”
Brewster’s statistics reveals the variety he possesses in his finishing ability. He has scored seven off his right foot and three of his left, there have been eight first-time finishes inside the box and two strikes from distance. On eight occasions he has scored Swansea’s first goal in the game.
He has managed four of those goals in Swansea’s last six matches – when the pressure was at its most intense as they surged into the play-offs – including a blistering 25-yarder at Reading that sparked their astonishing late dash into the top six with a 4-1 win.
Swansea are desperate to hold onto the England U21 striker, whatever league they may be in next season, but Ayew, 30, has no doubts Brewster is ready for the step up now – either on loan again in Wales or back at Liverpool.
“I pray for him to be able to get this club up by his goals and then I think you will see it will be a big turning point in his career,” says Ayew.
“He has the qualities to play in the Premier League, there’s no discussion to be had about that.
“But football is about a lot of things. You need to have a good manager who understands his game, who understands his personality, who can put players around him who can make him play well.
“We talk on the pitch and off the pitch about football a lot, sometimes about life because sometimes what happens in your personal life reflects a bit on the pitch.
“You need to get yourself right and he listens, he wants to work. He wants to go to the top. And if you want to get to the top, you need to sacrifice certain things to get what you want.
“It’s not easy, but that’s what I think he’s ready to do. I know and I believe honestly and truly that if Rhian works hard he will be a top player.”
Brentford and their BMW were cruising just 10 days ago after eight successive victories put them bumper-to-bumper with West Brom for automatic promotion.
But they blew a gasket with two defeats to Stoke and Barnsley and now Swansea look the finer tuned after just one defeat in seven games.
“We’re on a good run. That’s, that’s a fact,” says Ayew.
“Brentford’s three up top have been scoring and that’s why they are where they are. They missed out on the last two games to go up directly but that’s football.
“After the lockdown no-one was seeing them getting close to West Brom and they were able to do the work to get really, really close. So, the fact that they lost the last two games, I think, doesn’t mean anything.
“I think they deserve to be where with the help of Said. He’s been influential for them. Watkins and Mbeumo – they’re really good players.
“That’s why there are where they are, to be honest. So we know that but we also have very good players.”
As well as Brewster, Ayer has also been impressed by nmidfielder Conor Gallagher since he arrived from Chelsea on loan in the same month.
Both players, says, Ayew, are good enough to play at the higher level.
“Quality wise, yes, they have it in the legs and in the head, they’re ready to go further. I think they’re ready to work hard.
“I think those boys have a great future ahead of them, now it’s up to them to do more, to work more to always, you know, be focused solely on football.
“That’s the most important thing. And I think they have what it takes to play in the Premier League with Swansea or another team, but I prefer them to do with this one.
“When you’re young, the most important thing is to have a manager that believes in you and that wants to make you grow. And they’ve caught that with our boss here, Steve Cooper and I think it’s a big, big plus for them.
“But in the situation we were in, a lot of managers I know would have taken off the younger players. But our manager had faith in them.”
Swans head coach Cooper insists his fresh-faced team of loanees and wannabees will be free of the pressures weighing down the other three clubs in the play-offs.
“The other three are at a completely different stage to us. The expectations are really high elsewhere,” says Cooper.
“Brentford have brought players and the other two semi-finalists – Fulham and Cardiff – are two of the most resourced squads in the league.
“The strength in depth they’ve got is ridiculous, really, compared to us. But we don’t mind that.
“We love the fact we’ve got loads of young players and like playing in a certain way.”