Chelsea couldn’t make the most of a golden opportunity on Sunday, as they sleepwalked their way to a 1-1 draw away to Brentford a day after 3rd-place Nottingham Forest were beaten by Aston Villa.
WATCH – Brentford v Chelsea full match replay
The Blues (4th - 53 points) could have moved to within two points of the Tricky Trees with seven games left to play in the Premier League this season (and kept both Manchester City and Villa behind them at weekend’s end), instead the gap is four and Man City can overtake them for 4th with a win in the Manchester derby later on Sunday.
MORE - Enzo Maresca reaction
Enzo Maresca certainly had one eye on Thursday’s Europa Conference League trip to Poland, as Cole Palmer, Nicolas Jackson and Pedro Neto all started the game on the bench before coming on in the second half. Chelsea had just two scoring chances in the first half — both from set pieces — and though they had 16 shots in the second half, nine were taken from outside the box and accounted for just 0.76 xG.
Brentford (12th - 42 points) had the best chances of the game in quick succession late on, but Sepp van den Berg buried a free header in the ground from five yards out and Yoane Wissa put a glancing header wide of the post a minute later.
Finish top-5 + win a trophy = a successful first season for Maresca
If you can think all the way back to August and early September, try to do so. Chelsea had just made another big-money attacking signing and we were all wondering how Maresca was going to find enough minutes for all of them (and what the contract situation was going to look like in 2034). They managed to lose just two of their first 17 PL games while progressing comfortably in the Conference League, and they were one of the more entertaining teams to watch with all that talent beating teams with lightning-quick counters. Then, Romeo Lavia picked up a hamstring injury (he hasn’t been back since) and it looked like the whole thing might just fall apart over the festive period, so now they’re back to grinding out results and doing just enough (multiple goals scored just twice in nine PL games) to get over the line. If you had offered UEFA Champions League qualification and the Europa Conference League trophy to Chelsea fans at the start of the season, they would have snapped your hand off to grab it. Oddly enough, it’s quite obvious that the club that does all of the transfer business needs to make a few more key signings in the summer to take the next step.
Player ratings - Brentford vs Chelsea
What’s next?
- Legia Warsaw vs Chelsea — Thursday, 11:45 am ET (Europa Conference League QF)
- Arsenal vs Brentford — Saturday, 12:30 pm ET
- Chelsea vs Ipswich — Sunday, 9 am ET
Brentford vs Chelsea live updates - by Andy Edwards
Brentford vs Chelsea final score: 0-0
Goalscorers: None
Brentford starting lineup
Flekken - Ajer, Collins, Van den Berg, Lewis-Potter - Norgaard, Yarmolyuk, Damsgaard - Mbeumo, Schade, Wissa
Chelsea starting lineup
Sanchez - James, Tosin, Chalobah, Gusto - Caicedo, Dewsbury-Hall, Fernandez - Madueke, Sancho, Nkunku
How to watch Brentford vs Chelsea live, stream link and start time
Kick off time: 9am ET Sunday
Venue: Gtech Community Stadium — West London
TV Channel: USA
Streaming: Watch live on NBC.com
Chelsea are seeking a first top-four finish since 2021-22 under Thomas Tuchel, and the fourth-place Blues have a one-point advantage over fifth-place Man City and a two-point margin ahead of Newcastle. The Magpies have played one fewer game, and the three teams are part of a mass of clubs seeking what’s likely to be five Champions League places.
Brentford are 3-2-2 in seven matches against the Blues in the Premier League, though Chelsea won the reverse fixture 2-1 at Stamford Bridge when Marc Cucurella and Nicolas Jackson scored in the pre-Christmas affair. Brentford just haven’t been able to stack wins this Premier League season, winning consecutive games just once, but they’ve also bounced back from a loss to win a game on eight different occasions. The Bees lost 2-1 at Newcastle during the week, so they’ll hope to make it work a ninth time.
Brentford team news, focus
OUT: Michael Kayode (knee), Fabio Carvalho (shoulder), Igor Thiago (knee), Josh Dasilva (knee) | QUESTIONABLE: Aaron Hickey (thigh), Rico Henry (fitness), Mathias Jensen (illness), Gustavo Nunes (back)
Chelsea team news, focus
OUT: Romeo Lavia (other), Mykhailo Mudryk (suspension), Omari Kellyman (hamstring - out for season)
Brentford vs Chelsea prediction
Anything’s possible here. Chelsea have won three-of-four to reestablish their Champions League hopes, but dealt with an always-tense derby with Spurs at midweek. Brentford also staged a scrap with Newcastle and this could be wide-open, scrappy, or a mixture of the two. Brentford 1-1 Chelsea.
