Thomas Frank's Brentford side have made a stuttering start to their Sky Bet Championship campaign - finding goals hard to come by and lacking a clinical edge.

Though still with a technically and physically strong squad at his disposal, the sale of striker Neal Maupay has hit Frank's side hard, with, as yet, nobody able to take up the goalscoring mantle left behind by the Frenchman, who moved to Premier League club Brighton in the summer.

Though 'The Bees' brought in Greek striker Nikolaos Karelis from Belgian side Genk, the frontman has been unable to find his form up to now and has struggled for game time in West London.

Brentford have a shortage of forward options in their squad, the one area where they are truly lacking, and it's showing on the pitch as Frank's side lack the intelligence, nous and abilities required to break teams down.

The Bees are currently using exciting youngster Ollie Watkins as the focal point of their attack. Watkins is a fine talent - one who's destined to play at the top level at some point - but he's not an out and out striker. He's better suited to an attacking midfield role, when able to create move between defensive lines and work in tandem with a frontman.

Brentford's lack of attacking options - aside from Watkins and Karelis, the only other forwards on their books are untried youngsters - has seen The Bees score just five league goals this season and it's becoming an increasing concern for manager Thomas Frank.

With his team failing to score in four of their last five games, Frank will rue the departure of Maupay and more pertinently, his inability to replace the prolific striker in the summer.

Understandably, Brentford now look better on the counter attack, with Watkins able to link with creative midfielders Said Benrahma and Bryan Mbuemo to catch opponents out on the break. However, when teams sit back against them, particularly at Griffin Park, they lack the nous and cutting edge to break them down and finish opportunities.

They also lack a physical presence at the top end of the pitch - one who can hold the ball up to relieve pressure, get his team up the pitch and give opposition defender's a different kind of problem.

Frank will hope his team can find ways to win games within it's current setup, but the Dane will surely be looking to address his lack of forward options at the earliest possible opportunity.