Chelsea are back in Premier League action on Saturday evening when they face Brentford, who are a surprise package.
The Blues are now in first place, with a one-point lead over Southampton following their 3-1 victory over the Saints before the international break.
However, before facing their seventh-placed opponents, head coach Thomas Tuchel must deal with a number of injury concerns before deciding on a starting lineup.
Team news
Brentford
• Brentford have a few first-team players to check on ahead of their match against Chelsea on Saturday.
• Kristoffer Ajer, the center defender, is a doubt, but Vitaly Janelt and Shandon Baptiste, the central midfielders, are out.
• With midfield worries, Yoane Wissa might make his complete league debut following some good recent performances.
Chelsea
• N’Golo Kante is expected to return from his COVID-19 illness for Chelsea, however he may just start on the bench.
• After joining the Brazil squad during the international break, Thiago Silva is unavailable. Trevoh Chalobah should preserve his spot in the side despite Antonio Rudiger’s doubts.
• Chelsea are still without Reece James and Christian Pulisic for Saturday’s trip to Brentford.
• Even ahead of summer acquisition Saul Niguez, Ruben Loftus-Cheek and Ross Barkley have surprisingly pushed their way back into contention.
• Timo Werner, who had a nice international break with Germany and scored in Chelsea’s last game, will be hoping to start here.
• Ben Chilwell has had a difficult few months, but there appears to be some hope at the end of the road.
Prediction
• Brentford have beaten Arsenal at home and drew with Liverpool, so they should be confident going into Saturday’s match against Chelsea in west London.
• Chelsea beat Southampton 3-1 before the interval, but they needed two late goals to win. In reality, they’ve struggled in recent games.
• Given what we’ve seen from Brentford against Liverpool, there’s no reason why the newly promoted side can’t cause Chelsea problems in this match.
Match Facts
• In 11 of their last 12 away games, Chelsea has gone undefeated (Premier League).
• Brentford has scored at least two goals in each of their last three games (Premier League).
Brentford possible starting lineup:
Raya; Pinnock, Jansson, Ajer; Henry, Onyeka, Norgaard, Canos; Wissa, Toney, Mbeumo
The Blues are now in first place, with a one-point lead over Southampton following their 3-1 victory over the Saints before the international break.
However, before facing their seventh-placed opponents, head coach Thomas Tuchel must deal with a number of injury concerns before deciding on a starting lineup.
Team news
Brentford
• Brentford have a few first-team players to check on ahead of their match against Chelsea on Saturday.
• Kristoffer Ajer, the center defender, is a doubt, but Vitaly Janelt and Shandon Baptiste, the central midfielders, are out.
• With midfield worries, Yoane Wissa might make his complete league debut following some good recent performances.
Chelsea
• N’Golo Kante is expected to return from his COVID-19 illness for Chelsea, however he may just start on the bench.
• After joining the Brazil squad during the international break, Thiago Silva is unavailable. Trevoh Chalobah should preserve his spot in the side despite Antonio Rudiger’s doubts.
• Chelsea are still without Reece James and Christian Pulisic for Saturday’s trip to Brentford.
• Even ahead of summer acquisition Saul Niguez, Ruben Loftus-Cheek and Ross Barkley have surprisingly pushed their way back into contention.
• Timo Werner, who had a nice international break with Germany and scored in Chelsea’s last game, will be hoping to start here.
• Ben Chilwell has had a difficult few months, but there appears to be some hope at the end of the road.
Prediction
• Brentford have beaten Arsenal at home and drew with Liverpool, so they should be confident going into Saturday’s match against Chelsea in west London.
• Chelsea beat Southampton 3-1 before the interval, but they needed two late goals to win. In reality, they’ve struggled in recent games.
• Given what we’ve seen from Brentford against Liverpool, there’s no reason why the newly promoted side can’t cause Chelsea problems in this match.
Match Facts
• In 11 of their last 12 away games, Chelsea has gone undefeated (Premier League).
• Brentford has scored at least two goals in each of their last three games (Premier League).
Brentford possible starting lineup:
Raya; Pinnock, Jansson, Ajer; Henry, Onyeka, Norgaard, Canos; Wissa, Toney, Mbeumo
Chelsea possible starting lineup:
Mendy; Chalobah, Christensen, Rudiger; Azpilicueta, Kovacic, Jorginho, Chilwell; Mount, Werner, Lukaku
Our Prediction: Brentford 1- 2 Chelsea