Premier League | Gameweek 16

Dec 15, 2024 at 7pm UK

Stamford Bridge

Chelseavs.Brentford

Match preview

Many will see this as a guaranteed goalscorer, with both sides currently at the top of the scoring charts, but that could be a little misleading.

Chelsea have scored just 12 of their 35 Premier League goals at Stamford Bridge this season, while only Southampton have scored fewer away from home than Brentford's five.

Enzo Maresca's side start the weekend in second place, but their home form has been largely mediocre, with just three wins from seven.

However, their last outing at the Bridge ended in success, with a 3-0 win over Aston Villa helping them to a four-match winning streak in the Premier League, the longest of any team in the top flight this season.

The Blues have also scored three or more goals in their last three victories, thanks to the superb form of Cole Palmer and Nicolas Jackson, and have the chance to make it four in a row for just the second time in their history, having achieved the feat in their title-winning campaign of 1954-55.

However, last weekend's 4-3 win at London rivals Tottenham Hotspur highlighted their defensive shortcomings, and a team as porous as Chelsea is rarely in contention for the title come May.

However, the win moved them into second place after Arsenal dropped points at Fulham, and Maresca's men closed the gap on leaders Liverpool to four points after Arne Slot's men had their game with Everton postponed.

A youthful Chelsea squad travelled to Astana, Kazakhstan, on Thursday and won 3-1 to book their place in the last 16 of the Conference League, meaning Maresca can rotate heavily again next week against Shamrock Rovers.

That means the Chelsea boss will have a fresh XI to choose from, even if he is a little tired after a 16-hour flight to and from Almaty, as he looks to end a bizarre run of form against Brentford.

Chelsea won at the Gtech in Brentford's first season in the Premier League in 2021-22, but have failed to win any of the subsequent five meetings, losing all three at Stamford Bridge.

A 4-1 win on their first PL visit, followed by a 2-0 success since, gives Brentford the chance to become the first side since Leeds United in the 1970s to win four in a row at the Bridge.

The Bees have never been in a better position to build on that, having made their best ever start to a Premier League season after 15 games, with 23 points currently on the board.

However, only one of those 23 points has come away from home - against a struggling Everton side - and Southampton are the only other club in the division yet to win away from home.

They may have beaten Newcastle United 4-2 at home last weekend in another thrilling encounter, but Thomas Frank's side were comfortably beaten at Villa Park on their last trip away from home.

Despite winning just three league games on the road in 13 months, Frank insists there is no concern over away results, but it will become a problem if goals and results dry up at home.

Recent Performance

Chelsea Premier League form:DDWWWW

Chelsea form (all competitions):WWWWWW

Brentford Premier League form:LWDWLW

Team News

After taking a 'C' squad to Almaty on Thursday, Maresca will revert to a similar side to the one that faced Spurs last week, with none of the Kazakhstani contingent expected to feature.

Pedro Neto was in the side on Thursday but will serve a suspension this weekend following his yellow card against Spurs, meaning Noni Madueke will replace him on the wing.

The only other change could be at right-back, where Malo Gusto is in contention to start after coming on at the interval in North London, possibly replacing Romeo Lavia.

Mykhaylo Mudryk is expected to be available after recovering from illness, but Reece James and Wesley Fofana remain sidelined with hamstring injuries.

Brentford boss Frank is unlikely to stick with the same attacking line-up he named last week, with Bryan Mbeumo and Keane Lewis-Potter at full-back and Yoane Wissa, Igor Thiago and Fabio Carvalho in the front three.

The latter two could be dropped in favour of defensive options such as Mads Roerslev and Mikkel Damsgaard, who is also set to return after being rested against Newcastle after five consecutive starts.

Vitaly Janelt was unavailable last week with a minor problem and should be available, but Mathias Jensen is also set to miss out again with a hamstring problem.

Possible starting lineup

Chelsea possible starting lineup:

Sanchez; Gusto, Badiashile, Colwill, Cucurella; Caicedo, Enzo; Madueke, Palmer, Sancho; Jackson

Brentford possible starting lineup:

Flekken; Roerslev, Collins, Pinnock, Van den Berg; Norgaard, Janelt; Mbeumo, Damsgaard, Lewis-Potter; Wissa