London, Aug 18 (IANS): Ivan Toney, Brentford’s star striker, has been left out of the squad that will take on Crystal Palace on Sunday amidst rising ‘transfer interest’ on the player.

Ahead of kick-off, Brentford head coach Thomas Frank confirmed that the Englishman has been left out of the squad due to other team’s circling in on his transfer. He also went on to suggest that the team ‘can cope without’ Toney.

“A lot of things going on with Ivan, especially with transfers, there's a lot of transfer interest. Because of all that, we've decided not to include him in the squad. I can't give too much away the day before. Of course Ivan is a top player, we all know that. He has been fantastic for us for four years but we showed last season we can win without him. Is it his last game? Who knows. There is interest, it's not close,” said Thomas to Sky Sports.

Toney has attracted a lot of interest from Saudi Pro League side Al-Ahli, according to a report by The Athletic, the team is in active negotiations for Toney as his five-year contract, which he signed in 2020, is set to roll into its final year and the club have decided to cash in on one of their most prized assets rather than risking letting him leave on a free contract as Toney appears to not be interested in signing a contract extension with the club.

Edouard Mendy, Merih Demiral, Roberto Firmino, and Riyad Mahrez the big names that Al Ahli scooped from the Premier League last summer and the team finished third in the Saudi Pro League.

Toney has made 114 appearances for The Bees and has scored 72 goals and provided 23 assists for the club in his four years in West London.