Brentford 3-0 Chelsea: Bees sting West London rivals
Brentford beat Chelsea 3-0 in the West London derby as the Blues defensive fragility continued.
Jaidon Anthony gave Brentford the lead in the 61st minute, before Igor Thiago doubled the home side’s advantage, and Fabio Carvalho sealed the win in stoppage time.
The result strengthens Brentford’s claim on a European place heading into the international break and was the Bees’ first home win over Chelsea since 1938.
Local Rivals Play Out Tense First Half
Brentford’s first focus for the game was withstanding their opponent’s fast start.
Chelsea had scored five goals in the first 15 minutes of Premier League games this season.
The Blues were subdued throughout much of the First Half however, in the absence of first choice striker Joao Pedro.
The visitors’ best moment came after half an hour, when Cole Palmer was brought down on the edge of the Brentford penalty area, and Morgan Rogers forced a save from Brentford goalkeeper Caoimhin Kelleher from the resultant free-kick.
Brentford also carved out a chance shortly before half-time, when Chelsea goalkeeper Emiliano Martinez saved left-back Keane Lewis-Potter’s shot from the edge of the penalty area.
Despite these late chances, both sides struggled to fashion clear cut opportunities, with Palmer dropping increasingly deep as the half went on, in order to collect the ball.
Brentford Take Second Half Chances
Brentford started the Second Half the stronger side, with winger Jaidon Anthony drawing a close range save from Martinez in the 51st minute, before the flag was raised for offside.
Anthony headed his side into the lead 10 minutes later, when Jannik Schuster headed Mikkel Damsgaard’s corner back across the face of goal, and found Anthony unmarked at the far post.
Defending set-pieces has remained an achilles heel for Chelsea this season, with the Blues having conceded from them against Brighton in the Premier League, and Leeds in the Carabao Cup.
Chelsea manager Xabi Alonso attempted to alter the flow of play by substituting striker Danny Welbeck for young winger Geovany Quenda with 20 minutes to go.
This meant that Rogers moved from a number ten role, into a false nine position.
The Blues continued to lack for an attacking focal point however, increasingly relying on crosses from deep.
The game was effectively sealed with seven minutes remaining when winger Kevin Schade saw his shot saved by Martinez, only for Thiago to turn the rebound into an empty net for his first goal of the season.
Alonso turned to Estevao, and young debutant Mahdi Nicoll-Jazuli late on, but Chelsea were unable to claw their way back into the game.
It was instead Brentford who scored in additional time when substitute Fabio Carvalho pounced on Kevin Schade’s deflected cross, to make it 3-0.
Player of the Match: Jannik Schuster
Schuster came into the Brentford side following due to a calf injury for club captain Nathan Collins during his side’s 1-1 draw at home to Sunderland.
He has looked calm and reassured since, including up against Welbeck and later Rogers tonight.
He made vital blocks from Rogers’ shots in both halves, and it was his strength and positioning at an offensive corner which created Brentford’s first goal.
What’s Next?
This was both teams’ last fixture before the first international break of the season.
Brentford will look to continue their unbeaten run when return to Premier League action when they travel to Aston Villa on Saturday 10th October, before hosting Liverpool a week later.
Chelsea’s will hope to bounce back at home to Bournemouth on Saturday 10th October, with the Blues travelling to Everton a week later.
Comments