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New Brentford boss Marinus Dijkhuizen to receive texts on team talk during game

New Brentford head coach Marinus Dijkhuizen will receive stats-based texts during games instructing him what to drill into his players in a half-time team talk.

Brentford's new head coach Marinus Dijkhuizen has been told that he will receive texts informing him what to include in his half-time team talk during matches in the Championship next season.

The Bees are taking statistical analysis to a new level by scrutinising games as they take place and feeding the most useful information to Dijkhuizen, who was confirmed as the West London club's new boss on Monday.

He said at a press conference on Thursday that he is "fully behind" the club's 'moneyball' approach and co-director of football Rasmus Ankersen believes that real-time stats can "move the needle" in the Bees' favour.

"Stats can reveal some things that the eyes and the ears can't," said Ankersen, who is also chairman of Danish club FC Midtjylland - a club also possessed by Brentford owner Matthew Benham.

"We need to decide what information will be useful at certain phases; pre-match, post-match and during the game.

"There's lots of inefficiencies in football and it's about trying to find the things that will move the needle for us. It's a process where we need to take some risks and hopefully find things that give us five or 10% extra."

Ankersen revealed that their stats-driven recruitment has worked well with Midtjylland, who won the Danish Superliga for the first time in their history this season, but admitted that it might seem "radical" to those watching on in England.

"I understand to a conservative culture it may seem a bit radical," he added. "Some of the ideas are a bit radical, but we believe that an idea always normalises itself in the process."

In their first season in the Championship for 21 years last term, Brentford finished fifth under manager Mark Warburton and were beaten in the playoff semi-finals by Middlesbrough.

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Jota of Brentford celebrates scoring his goal with Andre Gray during the Sky Bet Championship match between Brentford and Wigan Athletic at Griffin Park on May 2, 2015
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