Brentford hammer London neighbours Chelsea 3-0

Alonso’s Chelsea honeymoon shatteredBrentford beat their big-spending west London rivals Chelsea 3-0 on Friday with second-half goals by forwards Jaidon Anthony, Igor Thiago and Fabio Carvalho condemning Xabi Alonso’s men to their third straight Premier League game without a win. Anthony pounced in the 61st minute when he nodded in from close range after Jannik Schuster headed a corner back across the goal which extended Chelsea’s long run of league games without a clean sheet to 21. Thiago made it 2-0 in the 83rd minute when Emiliano Martinez saved from Kevin Schade on a breakaway but the ball dropped to the Brazilian who made no mistake. Substitute Carvalho wrapped up the win when he turned in a cross by Schade in added time. Schuster said he and his colleagues had turned up the pressure on Chelsea after the break and the approach paid off. “I think when the second half began we played it more directly forward and we scored after that so I’m just happy,” the Austrian told Sky Sports. Brentford’s win pushed the Bees, who are unbeaten so far in the league, up to third in the table ahead of the remaining weekend fixtures. Chelsea sit in seventh place. It was the first home win for Brentford over Chelsea since 1938 and manager Keith Edwards and his players celebrated at the final whistle, with their fans dancing along in the stands. The usually free-scoring Blues – who had racked up a total of ten goals in the first four games of the season, behind only Brighton & Hove Albion on 13 – came close early on when Pedro Neto’s curling shot was saved by Caoimhin Kelleher. Cole Palmer almost weaved his way through Brentford’s defence on two occasions but overall Chelsea, missing in-form Brazil striker Joao Pedro through injury, were comfortably held at bay by the home defence. Alonso made five changes, with captain Reece James also injured. Danny Welbeck got his first league start for the Blues and fellow veteran Jordan Henderson made his Chelsea debut against the club he played for last season. Moises Caicedo remained sidelined due to an injury that has made him miss all but a few minutes of the season so far, contributing to Chelsea’s defensive fragilities. Alonso’s Chelsea honeymoon shattered Chelsea coach Xabi Alonso will be relieved that the international break now gives him three weeks of respite to fix his team who, after the 3-0 defeat at Brentford, have conceded 12 goals in their five opening Premier League games. The season began brightly with wins over Fulham and Brighton & Hove Albion, prompting talk of Alonso turning Chelsea into possible title contenders after his move to Stamford Bridge in July. But there were warning signs in those early wins as Chelsea let in five goals over the 180 minutes. A subsequent 2-1 defeat at Arsenal, a 2-2 home draw against Hull City last weekend and Friday’s hammering by Brentford have ruined Alonso’s honeymoon. The Spaniard said his players were proving unable to keep their focus throughout matches and needed to show more consistency and fighting mentality. “It’s about 95 minutes. We have not been able to keep that level throughout these few games in the start of the season, and it’s something that we have to do better,” Alonso told reporters. “We know that it’s a process, that it’s still (only) five games, and in a competitive Premier League, that each game is really hard.” Alonso will be hoping for good news from his medical team before Chelsea’s next game, at home against Bournemouth on October 10. Midfield lynchpin Moises Caicedo, who typically provides a screen for the defence, has played only 14 minutes so far this season and Italy defender Marco Palestra has not featured at all since he moved to London over the summer. In-form Brazil striker Joao Pedro was conspicuous by his absence on Friday. But Chelsea fans will be wondering how the other members of their expensively assembled team were largely outplayed by Brentford in the second half of Friday’s encounter after a goalless first half. Goals from Jaidon Anthony, Igor Thiago and substitute Fabio Carvalho showed how the Bees have gone from strength to strength since Keith Andrews took over as coach in 2025 and they are unbeaten so far this campaign. “I felt there was a performance bubbling. I just could see that in the players’ eyes last couple of days,” Andrews told reporters. “The approach has been really focused and I thought in the second half in particular we showed exactly what we are.”