Brentford vs Chelsea. Premier League.
Gtech Community StadiumAttendance16,940.
Brentford's Shandon Baptiste missing with dislocated shoulder, Antonio Rudiger and Thiago Silva to miss out for Chelsea; watch Brentford vs Chelsea live on Saturday Night Football from 5pm - kick-off 5.30pm
Friday 15 October 2021 15:29, UK
Team news, stats and prediction ahead of Brentford vs Chelsea in the Premier League on Saturday Night Football; kick-off 5.30pm.
Brentford are without Shandon Baptiste for their first Premier League clash with west London neighbours Chelsea.
Grenada midfielder Baptiste dislocated his shoulder during the Bees' 2-1 victory at West Ham before the international break.
Kristoffer Ajer and Vitaly Janelt should be available after missing the West Ham win through injury, while Ethan Pinnock has recovered from the knock which forced him out of international duty with Jamaica.
Thiago Silva and Antonio Rudiger will miss out for Chelsea, with Thomas Tuchel's defence stretched after the international break.
Silva was only due back in England on Friday afternoon, while Rudiger has picked up a back injury.
Reece James, N'Golo Kante and Romelu Lukaku are all fit, but Hakim Ziyech is unlikely to feature after suffering headaches and Christian Pulisic has continued ankle trouble.
Brentford vs Chelsea is live on Sky Sports Premier League from 5pm; kick-off 5.30pm. Sky Sports customers can watch in-game clips in the live match blog on the Sky Sports website and app. Highlights will also be published on the Sky Sports digital platforms and the Sky Sports Football YouTube channel shortly after the final whistle.
Arsenal, Liverpool and West Ham have all been buzzed by Brentford - now it could be Chelsea's turn.
Brentford's process in terms of their performance metrics certainly backs up that taking 12 points from their opening seven Premier League matches is no fluke. The start they have made is pretty phenomenal. Only six newly promoted sides in Premier League history have taken more points at this stage, and it's the most won after seven games since Hull City's fast start in 2008. I covered the Bees' clash with West Ham and their first 30 minutes was the most complete performance I've ever seen from a newly promoted team. They made the Hammers - a team that finished sixth last season - look like relegation candidates.
A look at the match prices for this west London derby certainly brings forward the argument that Brentford are still being underestimated by the markets. You can almost get 11/2 with Sky Bet for a home win and 5/2 for the Bees to avoid defeat - it's a real tempter for a team that has only lost one of their last 19 league games across two seasons. And that defeat was a last-minute winner for Brighton in a game where there was nothing between the teams.
I have decided to play a shorter price to get Brentford on my side though as the Evens for both teams to score looks too good to turn down.
Chelsea's defensive process remains strong but certainly it's not at the levels of last season. They are offering up good chances to the opposition. A figure of 1.45 expected goals conceded per 90 minutes in their last eight fixtures showcases that, albeit it's included matches against Liverpool and Manchester City.
In fact, Chelsea have the biggest difference between goals conceded (3) and expected goals against (8.6) in the Premier League after the opening seven games - at 5.6. Perhaps this Chelsea defence isn't as watertight as the actual numbers suggest? That makes the possibility of Brentford scoring in this game more likely than the odds on offer. Get on the both-teams-to-score train - it's best bet of the weekend material.
SCORE PREDICTION: 1-1
BETTING ANGLE: Both teams to score (Evens with Sky Bet)