Brentford discovered a few years into their new approach that the higher in the league they were, the more their players were worth - a player appearing in their mid-table team was suddenly worth millions more when they made the playoffs. They also recognised that they were more likely to be in the playoffs if they had a mixture of youth and experience, but it took them a while to get the balance right.

For me, signing an “experienced” player means someone who’s 25-27 and has played plenty of games, not someone over the age of 30.