Chelsea host Brentford in a London derby in Saturday’s early Premier League kick off. The blues are looking to push on from their poor start to the season against a Brentford side who currently sit in the bottom half.
Here we bring you the latest team news, match prediction and betting tips.
Chelsea Team News
Chelsea have an extensive injury list, with Wesley Fofana (knee), Christopher Nkunku (knee), Carney Chukwuemeka (knee), Ben Chilwell (thigh), Trevoh Chalobah (thigh), Romeo Lavia (ankle) and Armando Broja (knee) all out for the Blues.
They could welcome back Reece James and Axel Disasi back to their starting lineup though as they have both returned to fitness.
Chelsea Predicted Lineup:
Sanchez, Gusto, Silva, Colwill, Cucurella, Fernandez, Caicedo, Gallagher, Palmer, Sterling, Mudryk
Brentford Team News
The Bees will be without Rico Henry (knee), Mikkel Damsgaard (knee), Josh Dasilva (hamstring), Kevin Schade (groin), Shandon Baptiste (shoulder) and Kean Lewis-Potter (calf).
Ben Mee has however recovered from injury and could start this match, along with Aaron Hickey who returns following a one-match ban.
Brentford Predicted Lineup:
Flekken, Collins, Mee, Pinnock, Ajer, Jensen, Norgaard, Janelt, Hickey, Mbeumo, Wissa
Match Prediction
Chelsea are unbeaten in three Premier League games and look to finally be converting their performances into results. That trend must continue on Saturday if they are to start to put an end to the worrying recent record that follows them. The Blues have just 2 victories at Stamford Bridge in their previous 15 games, and just 2 in their last 12 top-flight London derbies.
This fixture proceeds a nightmare run of fixtures for Chelsea, with Spurs, Manchester City, Newcastle, Brighton and Manchester United to follow. With that in mind, they need a result here if they are to stay in contention for a return to European football heading into the Christmas period.
Brentford finished above Chelsea last sason and have beaten them at Stamford Bridge in both the past 2 seasons, most notably recording a 4-1 victory in the 2021/22 campaign. They could become the first side in Premier League history to win their first 3 games at Chelsea’s stadium if the result goes their way.
The Bees have good reason to be confident; they’re unbeaten in 12 London derbies and won their last 3 away from home. They will have watched Mauricio Pochettino’s men collapse against Arsenal last weekend, throwing away a 2 goal lead when they were seemingly plain sailing towards an impressive victory. They’ll be hoping to capitalise on any nerves around Stamford Bridge knowing a win would take them above their London rivals.
We expect Thomas Frank’s men to put up a solid fight in Saturday’s early kickoff, but they do lack a certain edge in the absence of talisman Ivan Toney. Chelsea have played some good football in recent weeks and with players slowly returning from injury, we expect them to keep going on their positive trajectory.
Prediction: Chelsea 2-0 Brentford
Betting Tips
- Chelsea to Win
- Player to Score Anytime – Raheem Sterling
- Player to be Carded – Aaron Hickey
AllAboutFooty 