Brentford might have crashed out of the Capital One Cup to fierce divisional rivals Fulham, but Harlee Dean says there is much to be optimistic about.

A lone strike from £11m striker Ross McCormack was enough to secure the Cottagers a 1-0 win at Griffin Park on Tuesday, which came hot on the heals of Saturday’s 1-1 draw with Birmingham City.

Boss Mark Warburton’s men have made a solid start to life in the Championship having got their first win on the board early.

And Dean reckons the Fulham clash – in which the Bees had their chances – was a clear indication they could more than compete with the league’s big boys.

“We haven’t played our strongest team yet which is a good sign as to how strong our squad is.

There is not much to be worried about in this division. We’ve given teams a bit more respect than we should have done a times.

“Hopefully that will be addressed over the next couple of games and we can get a bit of a run together.

“We are going to need to get wins all over the place this season to do well.

“There is a lot to be optimistic about.”

McCormack settled an even contest at Griffin Park and Dean fears home gams could follow a similar pattern unless the Bees cope better with teams setting up to frustrate their attacking style.

“Fulham came here and sat behind the ball and tried to play us on the counter," he said.

“That is testament to how good we are at home and our attacking style of football.

“Teams are going to come here and try and break at us. We have to be clever and break through them and make sure we are a bit more compact on the counter attack.

“It is a learning curve. It is a cup game. Unfortunately we couldn't get the win, but we gave a good account of ourselves."

Brentford travel to fellow league newboys Rotherham United tomorrow looking to avenge a 3-0 defeat at the New York Stadium in March.

“We’ve got to beat the teams that are likely to be around us,” he added.

“We have to give a better account of ourselves than last year.”