Brentford produced a ruthless display on Friday as they condemned Chelsea to a 3-0 defeat, exposing the defensive problems facing Xabi Alonso ahead of the three-week international break.
Chelsea’s promising start under the former Real Madrid coach has begun to unravel, with the Blues now collecting just one point from their last three Premier League matches.
Jaidon Anthony, Igor Thiago and Fabio Carvalho were all on target as Brentford extended their unbeaten start to the season and climbed above their west London rivals into third place.
Chelsea had quickly developed a reputation as one of the Premier League’s most entertaining sides under Alonso, with their opening four league fixtures producing 19 goals.
However, the absence of Joao Pedro through a knee injury appeared to affect their attacking fluency, while Cole Palmer and Morgan Rogers struggled to make an impact against a well-organised Brentford side.
After last weekend’s 2-2 draw against Hull, Alonso admitted he wanted his team to produce more controlled and “boring” matches.
The Spaniard made four changes for the Brentford clash, including handing Jordan Henderson his first Chelsea start against his former club.
The tactical changes helped produce a subdued first half, with neither goalkeeper seriously tested, but Brentford emerged after the interval with greater attacking intent.
Chelsea’s vulnerability from set-pieces was exposed just after the hour mark when Jannick Schuster rose highest to meet Mikkel Damsgaard’s corner. Anthony was then left with a simple finish into an unguarded net.
Chelsea struggled to respond and, as they pushed forward in search of an equaliser, Brentford exploited the space behind their defence.
Kevin Schade had a clear opportunity to score the second after being played through on goal, but Emi Martinez denied him with a fine save.
The rebound, however, fell kindly to Thiago, who made no mistake from the follow-up to end his goal drought.
The Brazilian scored 25 goals last season and earned a surprise call-up to Carlo Ancelotti’s World Cup squad, but he had endured a quiet start to the new campaign.
His goal against Chelsea was his first in the Premier League this season, prompting an emotional celebration as he removed his shirt.
Chelsea have now conceded at least twice in each of their five league matches under Alonso, highlighting the scale of the defensive problems facing the manager.
Brentford added a third in stoppage time when Schade’s low cross took a deflection and fell into the path of Carvalho, who fired high past Martinez.
The result moves Brentford to third in the Premier League table, behind defending champions Arsenal and Manchester City. They had also recorded a 3-0 victory over Tottenham on the opening weekend.
For Chelsea, the defeat represents another setback and underlines the work Alonso still has to do if the club are to challenge for the Premier League title.
