Brentford have not lost this season, and Chelsea arrive at the Gtech with nine goals conceded and new owners
Brentford are unbeaten after four games but have drawn the last three. Chelsea have conceded more than anyone else in the top seven, and Friday is their first match since Todd Boehly left.
Sep 18, 2026
Brentford have played four Premier League games and lost none of them. Chelsea have played four and conceded nine, more than any other side in the top seven. They meet at the Gtech Community Stadium on Friday night, 8pm in west London and 12.30am IST on Saturday morning, and the two records are the whole argument.
Three draws in a row is not a bad thing yet
Keith Andrews opened the season by beating Tottenham 3-0. Spurs have still not scored a Premier League goal this season, which flatters that result a little in hindsight, but a 3-0 on the opening weekend buys a manager a month of goodwill. He has spent it on draws against Leeds, Sunderland and Bournemouth.
Six points from four, seventh in the table, seven scored and four conceded. Brentford are difficult to beat and have not yet worked out how to finish anyone off. That is a better problem than the reverse, and Andrews, who signed a contract to 2032 in February, has the time to solve it.
The injury list does not help. Nathan Collins and Sepp van den Berg are both out, which removes two centre-backs at once, and so are the midfielders Josh Dasilva and Antoni Milambo. Kaye Furo, the 19-year-old striker, had an operation on Monday. That is five absences from a squad that was never especially deep.
Chelsea have scored 10 and conceded nine
Xabi Alonso’s first month has produced two wins, a defeat at Arsenal and a 2-2 draw at home to Hull, who are fourth. Sixth place and seven points is a reasonable return. Nine goals conceded in four matches is not, least of all for a squad this expensive.
Alonso arrived in July on a four-year deal, having won an unbeaten domestic double at Bayer Leverkusen and then lasted under eight months at Real Madrid. The Leverkusen side he built was defined by its defensive shape. This Chelsea team is not, at least not yet, and the gap between those two facts is the most interesting thing about his start.
Moises Caicedo is doubtful with a knock. Joao Pedro missed training this week, with his involvement against Brentford still undecided.
The first match of the Clearlake era
This is also Chelsea’s first game since Todd Boehly stopped being their chairman. Clearlake Capital bought out the 12.83 per cent stakes held by Boehly and Mark Walter on Wednesday. The deal puts an enterprise value of about 5 billion pounds on the club, and the Financial Times reported the two sellers will share around 950 million between them. Hansjorg Wyss keeps his stake.
Ownership changes do not usually show up in a Friday night result. This one is worth watching anyway, because the transfer policy that built this squad was written during a period when the boardroom was split, and one side of that split has now bought the other out.
What to expect
Brentford take a lot of shots and hold little of the ball, which is roughly how Hull got a point at Stamford Bridge. Chelsea have the better forwards and, on the evidence of the Hull draw, no reliable way of protecting a lead. A fourth straight Brentford draw would surprise nobody. Neither would a 3-2.