Thomas Frank says he has spoken to Neal Maupay about his reputation for engaging in the darks of the game and antagonising opponents.

Maupay, on loan at Brentford this season from Everton, has caught the ire of Kyle Walker and James Maddison in recent weeks, and Michail Antonio has described him as “the most disliked person on the field.”

The 27-year-old Frenchman has scored four goals in his last seven Premier League appearances and has forged a prolific strike partnership with Bees team-mate Ivan Toney.

“He’s done fantastic for us — before he came here he hadn’t scored a goal for ages,” Frank said. “What we and the club have done for him and what he has done himself is incredible. He deserves a lot of praise.”

Addressing the striker’s antics, the Brentford manager said: “What I believe is that every player is different, and they need to find their own way in what makes them tick and perform. Then it’s my responsibility to guide them sometimes.

“I get a lot of questions about this, so of course I’ve spoken to Neal about it. That I will keep to myself, but I think he needs to do what he thinks is important. I will guide him the right way I think he should go too.

“There’s a lot more that goes on in games than we see. I am in no doubt about that. I speak to players but rarely about how they should perform, but that is more tactical.

“But in terms of getting them to perform, a lot of players at that age know their level to perform. [What I say to them] is more what I want tactically.”

Asked whether Brentford have planned to make his loan permanent in the summer, Frank, 50, replied: “Like a lot of other transfer decisions, that will be taken at the end of the season because we are not in a hurry.”