Brentford midfielder Frank Onyeka has admitted that playing at the Africa Cup of Nations has helped boost his fitness level.

Onyeka was a key member of the Super Eagles side that finished second at the AFCON 2023 finals.

The 26-year-old started all Super Eagles’ seven games in the competition.

The combative midfielder impressed in Brentford’s 1-0 defeat to Manchester City on Tuesday night.

Onyeka claimed after the game that playing at the AFCON has helped his performance level.

“Going back to Africa, helping my team, coming back fit, it’s been really good. I feel really fit,” he told the club’s official website.

“It was hard, but it was also good, especially defending and on counter-attacks. We came here believing we could do it again, so to lose 1-0 is sad, but it was a good performance.

“It’s hard because they move the ball really quick, so we needed to adjust as quick as possible. We did that pretty well in the first half and the second half; defensively we did really well.”