FA Cup team news: Henry to start against Plymouth
Brentford defender Rico Henry will make his long-awaited return from a serious knee injury against Plymouth Argyle; Fábio Carvalho will also be involved in Saturday’s FA Cup third-round clash at Gtech Community Stadium having missed the Bees’ previous two games due to a minor groin injury
Brentford defender Rico Henry will start the Bees’ FA Cup third-round tie against Plymouth Argyle on Saturday, head coach Thomas Frank has revealed.
The full-back has not appeared for the first team since suffering a serious knee injury during a visit to Newcastle United in September 2023.
“Rico will be involved in the game tomorrow; not only will he be involved, he will start,” said Frank.
“That’s a big boost for him, us and the fans. He has been good in training; very aggressive as he always is.
“He played an in-house game and also a friendly with the B team.
“In general, he’s looked good and ready to start. If he wasn’t good enough, we wouldn’t start him.”
The Bees boss added: “Rico is the only player that was here when I came more than eight years ago, so it’s a good journey and story we have together.
“It’s the first game, and we need to remember that when players have been out for more than a year, it takes time to get back to a consistent high level in games.
“You only get there by training consistently and playing some minutes, so it’s good to have him back and I want to take it one step at a time.”
Brentford have no fresh injury concerns following a 5-0 victory over Southampton in the Premier League last time out.
Fábio Carvalho will be involved against Plymouth having missed the Bees’ previous two matches due to a minor groin injury. Ben Mee is “getting closer” but Saturday’s game will come too soon for the defender.
Josh Dasilva (knee), Ethan Pinnock (hamstring), Kristoffer Ajer (ankle), Igor Thiago (joint infection), Gustavo Nunes (back) and Aaron Hickey (hamstring) remain sidelined.
