IVAN TONEY’S Brentford exit is in doubt after his replacement Igor Thiago suffered an injury.
West Ham and Tottenham are in the hunt for Toney with SunSport exclusively revealing that the Bees were prepared to slash their asking price by £30million.
But those plans may be shelved after Thiago hurt his meniscus.
The Brazilian hitman, 23, scored twice in a 5-2 friendly win over Wimbledon but will miss tonight’s clash with Benfica.
It was an excellent start to his time in West London but the shine was taken off by his setback.
A club statement confirmed: “Brentford’s Igor Thiago suffered a meniscus injury during the Bees’ 5-2 victory over AFC Wimbledon.
“The striker, who scored a brace on his first appearance for the club, is unavailable for this evening’s game against Benfica and will have further scans next week to determine the extent of the injury.”
The expected recovery time for a meniscus injury is six to 12 weeks, meaning Thiago is likely to miss Brentford’s Premier League opener against Crystal Palace in August 18.
He could potentially be sidelined for a significant portion of the season depending on the severity of the injury.
Brentford had hoped to create an auction for Toney after he returned from an eight-month gambling ban in January and initially invited bids in excess of £80m.
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But there were no offers during the winter transfer window and the club have been surprised at the lack interest this summer.
Toney is keen to leave Brentford this summer but has repeatedly spoken of his desire to join a “top club that wins trophies.”
The 28-year-old could opt to see out the final year of his contract at Brentford in the hope of joining a big club on a free transfer next summer, although such a move may create tension with his employers.
Brentford broke their transfer record to pay Club Brugge £31m for former bricklayer Thiago, who they have been scouting for some time.
Thiago notched 18 goals in 34 Jupiler Pro League outings last term – firing Brugge to the title.
He netted 15 in 32 for Bulgarian outfit Ludogorets in his first season in Europe.
After losing his dad aged 13, Thiago carried fruit at a fair and worked as a bricklayer to make money.
Speaking to Brentford’s club website, he explained: “When I was 13 years old, my father passed away.
“I started to work at the fair carrying fruit. I also worked as a bricklayer. I had several jobs when I was younger, before I got into professional football and got the opportunity to play abroad.
“It helped me as a man, and it helped me as a person. It helped me to appreciate the little and big things in life, because today I look at my life and see that I’m privileged with everything I have.”
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