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.
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 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.
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
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
Brentford vs Chelsea live updates - by Andy Edwards
Brentford vs Chelsea live 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
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 ...
