Newsletter: Transfer chaos, Carabao Cup win, Athlon and PLinUSA hits

Hi again NYC Bees, one month in the books, and quite a bit to cover! The Yoane Wissa transfer saga reached a very ideal conclusion, and we got our first win under new manager Keith Andrews. But it's been a mixed bag of results. Here is some of the latest that has happened, and a look ahead to our schedule after the international break.

Bevy of schedule changes affect September itinerary
Before the season kicked off, we were informed of three changes to Brentford's September schedule. Under the circumstances, that means we will be meeting at The Red Lion, 151 Bleecker St., for two of the three Premier League matches. The Sept. 13 (Chelsea) and Sept. 20 (Fulham) games are now kicking off at 3 p.m. ET, and the pub has confirmed that the music lineup will hold off until after the final whistle. The one negative is the Sept. 27 match against Manchester United and Bryan Mbeumo. With the earlier kickoff (7:30 a.m. ET), that means we won't be getting together at The Red Lion for this fixture. We're also in the Third Round of the Carabao Cup this month, so stay tuned for more! See the graphic outlining these details.

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Wissa heads to Newcastle on £55 million transfer
It came down to the final day of the transfer window, but Brentford's front office patiently held firm for an appropriate fee on Yoane Wissa. Newcastle reportedly is paying £55 million for the nearly 29-year-old, ending a saga that included some childish tactics from Wissa to the club. Unlike Bryan Mbeumo, Christian Norgaard and others who outwardly displayed professional behavior during their respective transfer moves, Wissa's drama included deleting Brentford-related social media posts, a "promise" narrative on an alleged verbal deal and a rambling statement to do some damage control (making matters even worse). Fortunately the business side worked out, but Wissa has primed himself for a rude awakening when he returns to West London, and a club that did so much for him to get to this stage of his pro career.

Brentford's official site and social media channels intentionally omitted any sort of "thank you" from their messaging. That about sums up everything.

Ouattara signs, leads Bees to win in debut
You never know how quickly an incoming transfer can make an impact for Brentford, but the club did make sure to secure an important piece in the absence of Bryan Mbeumo moving forward. Dango Ouattara signed a five-year deal for a club-record fee of reportedly £42.5 million. The 23-year-old had played for Bournemouth since January of 2023, and he made a good first impression with Bees supporters. Ouattara scored the lone goal in the 12th minute of a 1-0 victory over Aston Villa on Aug. 23. That also gave new Brentford manager Keith Andrews his first win at the helm. It has been far from a smooth start overall, though, with a disappointing opening day loss at Nottingham Forest and a bitter 2-1 defeat at Sunderland, despite a lead and multiple opportunities to build a two-goal cushion.

NYC Bees land spot in Athlon Sports issue
We garnered some nice media attention as part of the Athlon Sports 2025-26 Premier League Preview issue! Football writer Michael Lewis spoke with me for his piece, Examining the PL's Booming American Fandom. And more coverage is on the way: Michael plans to join the NYC Bees at The Red Lion for the Sept. 20 Fulham-Brentford match. He'll want to chat with a few of us for an upcoming story on his Substack, View From The Front Row, so look forward to that!

Brentford News & Notes
Nelson joins on loan: Brentford secured English winger Reiss Nelson from Arsenal in the closing hours of the transfer window. The 25-year-old will be on a loan. Nelson has made 50 league appearances with Arsenal, but he has split his time over the years, joining Hoffenheim, Feyenoord and Fulham on loan stints over the course of several seasons.

Bees advance in Carabao Cup: With nine starting lineup changes, Brentford delivered in the Second Round of the Carabao Cup with a 2-0 victory at Bournemouth on Aug. 26. Fabio Carvalho and Thiago provided the goals, and backup goalkeeper Hakon Valdimarsson and his back line came through with the clean sheet. Brentford advances to the Third Round and will host Aston Villa sometime during the Sept. 15-22 stretch. Details will be provided in the coming days.

Back with Premier League in USA: Our interviews with PLinUSA are carrying into the new season! NYC Bee Alison Roberts has more or less become our Brentford spokesperson when it comes to these. To celebrate International Dog Day, Alison gave a pretty appropriate answer to "Describe your team using a dog breed!" Between just PLinUSA's Instagram and X accounts, they have a following of nearly 1.5 million people. We'll hopefully continue to be a staple on these social media channels moving forward!

Brentford Women start strong; Logie departs: New tier (5th), new division (London and South East Premier Division), same results for the Brentford Women and new head coach Carly Williams! After earning promotion, the squad opened its 2025-26 campaign with a 1-0 victory against Aylesford on Aug. 17, and they've kept that momentum going with a perfect 3-0-0 record through August. A bit of disappointing news came out, however, as Chloe Logie moved on to third-tier Real Bedford. Brentford said the team was looking into the possibility of a dual registration, but Logie will take her goal-scoring prowess solely to Bedford. She leaves behind an amazing Brentford chapter that included back-to-back Supporters' Player of the Year honors. All the best, Chloe!

Return to Forever Bees pod: Before the season got underway, I joined the Across the Seas But Forever Bees podcast on Aug. 5, to talk about our busy offseason. The show is hosted by Tim Searls (in Maine) and Greville Waterman (in London). We've made about a dozen or so appearances on this show over the years, and they're always looking for new guests. If you're ever interested in participating, please reach out and we'll connect you for a future spot!

Quick hits: Outside back Mads Roerslev, who spent six years with Brentford, signed with Championship side Southampton. Roerslev worked his way up from the B team, and he helped the Bees secure promotion with a key assist during their 2-0 victory over Swansea City in the 2021 playoff final. Good luck, Mads! ... Defender Jayden Meghoma has joined Scottish Premiership side Rangers on a season-long loan. The 19-year-old made his Premier League debut last season, and spent a stretch with Championship club Preston North End. ... Premier League Mornings Live and NBC Sports are heading to Kansas City for the Sept. 20-21 weekend, hosted by Rebecca Lowe and analysts Robbie Earle, Robbie Mustoe and Tim Howard. All 10 league matches will be broadcast in the Power & Light District, including Brentford's road match against Fulham on Sept. 20. ... An annual tradition, I wrote an updated NYC Premier League Pub Breakdown for 2025-26. The Red Lion has been and continues to be our home base, but every now and then we might have that friend who unfortunately supports another club and wants to catch the action in New York City. This little rundown should help them!

Suggestions, Comments, Feedback
If you ever have any thoughts, feel free to email (brentfordnyc@gmail.com) or chat with me anytime! #COYB!

Charlie