Brentford boss Thomas Frank insisted that his side “must come out flying against Southampton” at Gtech Community Stadium on Saturday.

The Bees have taken three points from their opening two Premier League fixtures – beating Crystal Palace and losing to Liverpool – while the newly promoted Saints are hoping to get off the mark in west London having been defeated 1-0 by Newcastle United and Nottingham Forest.

“I have seen their two games so far and some of their friendlies, so I am well aware of what they are capable of,” said Frank.

“They were very good in the Championship last year; at times they were unplayable.

“When I look at the first 25 minutes against Newcastle, away from home, it was very, very impressive.

The Bees boss added: “Russell [Martin] has set them up well with his coaching staff. They like to dominate the ball, and they like to create. They are very good at that in many ways.

“It’s a team I respect. They will put a big challenge up for us, so we need to hit a top performance, and the fans need to help us. We need to come out flying. We need to play with high tempo and high intensity.

“I am backing us. If we hit our highest level, we have a good chance to win. But we face a team who are desperate to get points as well.

“The Gtech needs to be a fortress. When we are on it and the fans are on it, it’s a very difficult place to play. That’s a team effort – the players, me, the fans – all of us together.

“Any team in this division that can have a fantastic home record has a good opportunity to have a good season.”