Brentford Boss Thomas Frank has warned his side that they must improve defensively to stand a chance of beating London rivals Millwall at home on Saturday.

Brentford, who sit just two points above Millwall in 16th in a tight Championship table, know that victory against Millwall will put them right back in the mix for the top six.

Frank, who replaced Dean Smith at Griffin Park in October, is still looking for his first win in charge of the west Londoners after seeing his side edged out by Bristol City, Preston and Norwich City in their last three fixtures.

But the Dane insists that improvements to his players’ defensive mindset will allow them to pick up an all-important three points in Saturday’s derby.  

He said: “We have a lot of respect for Millwall. I think they are a very hard-working and efficient team.

“We know that they are capable of making life difficult for every team in this league. We know that there will be spells in the game where we will need to defend well, especially in set-pieces.

“We need to make sure we don’t gift them opportunities. We need to improve our mentality when it comes to defending. We haven’t defended badly before, but we know that we can do better.

“As I said, they are an efficient side and we need to make sure we are first to the second ball.”

The Bees are without a win in eight league matches, but Frank denies the need to make any drastic changes for his side to get back to winning ways.

He continued: “I think we are 100% on the right path.

“I think that on our day, we are one of the best footballing sides in this league. We need to prove that we have this quality and start putting in better performances.

“Every game is a new opportunity to turn things around. If we can learn from our mistakes, be consistent in every training session and try to improve on our defending, then we will be fine.

“We’re looking forward to playing at home at Griffin Park again. We are determined to put in a good performance and pick up the three points.”

Frank confirmed that midfielder Kamohelo Mokotjo is unavailable for Saturday’s game after suffering an ankle injury against Norwich last weekend. Meanwhile, he remains confident that Rico Henry will be ready to return to the squad after the international break following a 45-minute appearance for the B team this week.