Chelsea was well on the way to winning the last London derby, only for Robert Sanchez to give the ball away and invite a 40-yard screamer. A goal that gave Arsenal confidence because the Gunners remained on top of the Blues till they got their equalizer. Mauricio Pochettino’s men welcome Brentford to Stamford Bridge for another London derby, but who does ‘Poch’ give the go-ahead for this one?
A horrible error from Sanchez against Arsenal, even though some may try to argue that Conor Gallagher was not alert and therefore allowed Rice to steal the ball that he hadn’t received in the first place. Sanchez had a much better view of the situation than Gallagher did yet did not act like it, and that’s why it’s fully Sanchez’s error.
Gusto lost his man for the equalizer in the Arsenal game. He was supposed to have spotted Leandro Trossard on his shoulder and he seemed to, but when the cross came in, he did a whole lot of nothing. Pochettino has confirmed that James is not fit to start so Gusto starts this one too.
Disasi might be the better option for right centerback in this game, as opposed to Thiago Silva. This is purely for the physical aspect of the game. Brentford is a very energetic team, and they are likely to look to take advantage of the Silva part of the equation of the Blues’ defense. Disasi would be better placed to deal with the tricky Bryan Mbuemo or the fast Yoanne Wissa.
Badiashile may well be brought in as a substitute in this one, largely because he has not played a single minute of competitive football in the last five months. However, Chelsea cannot afford to drop lower down the table and the Blues have simply missed all that the former Monaco centerback brings.
Colwill was average, like everyone else in the back line against Arsenal. His physical profile means he would be crucial on the left flank for the Blues against Brentford.
Caicedo starts again. His tenacity and work rate would help the Blues in combating Brentford’s energy. His tackling and long passing numbers this season have been very good.
Fernandez comes in second for passes into the final third amongst midfielders in the Premier League, behind only Manchester United’s magnifico Bruno Fernandes. He has played the role of deep playmaker for the Blues superbly well. His finishing has been abysmal though, it has to be said.
Gallagher has been superb this season in all facets of his game except perhaps goal-scoring. He has comfortably been Chelsea’s best midfielder this season. His defending, passing, and chance creation have been great. No one in the squad has created more big chances than the central midfielder this season in the league.
It’s impressive how this kid has stepped into CFC and claimed a starting spot for himself, especially ahead of Mykhailo Mudryk and Noni Madueke. His numbers look exactly like that of Ziyech though, leading in chances created per 90 minutes, as well as big chances created per game and per 90 minutes, just like Ziyech did last season.
Sterling is still the favorite to start ahead of Mudryk if the choice is to start one or the other. Mudryk did score in his last game, but Sterling’s impact on Chelsea’s games is still more pronounced.
Jackson, for whatever reason, started from the bench last time out. The decision to bench him looked even dumber when the Senegalese was brought on. The way he troubled the duo of William Saliba and Gabriel Maghalhaes was expected, as he has been doing that to centerbacks since he arrived. Chels‘ needs center forwards on the pitch, and they cannot afford to be playing Palmer up top when Armando Broja and Jackson are on the bench.
