Brentford right-back Michael Kayode has made a name for himself with his extraordinary long throws, but the Italian insists there is far more to his game. The 21-year-old, who joined the Bees permanently from Fiorentina for £15m last summer, has launched the ball 65.4 metres this season – the longest in the Premier League since Opta started recording such data in 2019-20. Yet he downplays the skill, saying: 'I don’t play just because I have a long throw – you have to watch me as a player.'
Kayode’s long throws have been a potent weapon for Brentford: of 157 thrown into the box in the league this season, 40 have led to a shot and five have resulted in goals – nearly 10% of the club’s total. However, he insists he does not practise them. 'It is simple. Obviously it is a weapon, but across 90 minutes, the ball is out for maybe not even five minutes for throw-ins,' he said. The defender also used his trademark throw for a unique baby gender reveal at the Gtech Community Stadium in February, sending pink smoke into the air to confirm his partner is expecting a girl.
Kayode, who spent seven years in Juventus’s academy before dropping to Serie D side Gozzano aged 14, made his first-team debut at 16. His performances earned him a move to Fiorentina, where he tamed Napoli’s Khvicha Kvaratskhelia in a 3-1 win. 'I was 19 and before the game, everyone was saying: “You have to mark him, it’s going to be really hard,”' he recalled. 'The staff prepared me a lot, showed me a lot of clips, so I was a little bit shaky at first.'
Since joining Brentford on loan in January 2025, Kayode has become a key figure. No player aged 21 or under has played more Premier League minutes this season, and he has missed just one league match. His athleticism and power have been a perfect fit for English football. 'Two totally different types of football [compared to Serie A],' he said. 'More runs, more duels. I really enjoy it.'
Kayode’s all-action style is reflected in his heat maps and statistics: he is among the top 10 players for distance run in the Premier League, covering 355km so far, with only Bournemouth’s Adrien Truffert covering more among defenders. Off the pitch, he remains humble and infectious, crediting Brentford for their support and head coach Keith Andrews – formerly the set-piece coach – for his development. 'For me, he was still like a manager last season,' Kayode said.
