With only Tottenham’s Harry Kane involved in more Premier League goals than Ivan Toney since August 2021, the Brentford striker’s call-up to the England squad has been long overdue.
Having already scored five goals and provided two assists in seven games so far this season, combined with his overall impressive form throughout his time in the Premier League, it’s little wonder the 26-year-old has been noticed.
It signals the end of a redemption story that has proven critics wrong following a disastrous move from his hometown club of Northampton to Newcastle as a 19-year-old.
Despite signing a long-term deal, Toney made just two appearances in his three year spell at the club and was loaned out no less than six times before being sold to League One side Peterborough.
It was here that the real Ivan Toney began to come to light, scoring 40 goals in 76 appearances before joining a Brentford side reeling from Championship Play-Off heartbreak in the summer of 2020 for an initial fee of £5m.
Despite losing two of the ‘BMW’ trio in Said Benrahma and Ollie Watkins, Toney’s goalscoring qualities and self-assuredness more than made up for their departures as he scored a then-record 31 goals to finally see Brentford promoted from the Championship.
The top-flight transition has also been seamless, Toney managing to more than hold his own against the Premier League’s best defenders and, like Brentford themselves, exceeding all initial expectations.
While the main facet of his game is seen by most as his goal scoring (12 in his debut PL season), it’s his work off the ball and playmaking ability that has really improved since joining the Bees.
Toney is not just your average penalty box striker, he’s a complete forward who can create chances for team-mates just as easily as he can find the back of the net himself and is the main reason he has become Brentford’s talisman.
Before Christian Eriksen’s January arrival, Toney was Brentford’s main creator – holding up the ball and linking play as well as forming an impressive partnership with Bryan Mbeumo who would use his pace to run in behind defenders to feed off Toney’s pinpoint passes.
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Alongside his Wembley Play-Off heroics to help Brentford into the top-flight, vital goals last season against the likes of Norwich City and Burnley show his innate ability to come up with the goods when it really matters.
The constant upward trajectory over the past three years is down to the striker always believing in himself when those around him may not have, using the frustration of his early years at Newcastle as fuel to fire him to the very top.
Of course, in Brentford manager Thomas Frank he has found someone who has complete faith in him and there is no reason why Toney cannot continue to improve and develop because his potential is only matched by his confidence in reaching the very top.
Make no mistake, he is not in Gareth Southgate’s squad to make up the numbers – it is something that Toney believes he deserved as far back as March 2021 when Jamaica came calling to enquire about his services.
Toney kindly refused the offer, biding his time and 16 months later, his perseverance, patience and faith in himself has eventually paid off.
He is a striker in form more than most of his England colleagues with a skillset that offers Gareth Southgate a perfect Plan B striker to current striker Kane.
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While both are goalscorers with the ability to create opportunities for those around them, Kane’s passing may be better but Toney arguably shades it in terms of holding-up play.
Furthermore, Toney’s incredible record from the penalty spot, scoring 18 out of 18 since joining Brentford in 2020 is another impressive asset to possess – no player in the world currently has a better penalty conversion rate.
With two Nations League games this week against Italy and Germany to stake a claim for a place in England’s World Cup squad, there will be no surprise if there is another chapter written in Ivan Toney’s story of redemption.