Chelsea will be looking to keep up their excellent run of form in all competitions when they return to Premier League action on Sunday.
While Enzo Maresca will have only just returned from the Conference League trip to Kazakhstan, a vast amount of first team stars did not even fly to face Astana last night.
The likes of Cole Palmer and Moises Caicedo are almost certain to return, with them not featuring since the thrilling win over Tottenham last weekend.
Axel Disasi of Chelsea scores his team's second goal past Mark Flekken of Brentford during the Premier League match between Brentford FC and Chelse...
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Chelsea’s kick-off time vs Brentford makes it ‘odd’
The Blues are currently four points off the top of the Premier League, and while they are trying to not admit it are quickly finding themselves in some form of title race.
The West London derby on Sunday will take place at the unusual kick-off time of 7pm on Sunday, in order to allow them requisite recovery time following their European exploits.
Chris Sutton has claimed this is going to be strange for supporters, and also questioned whether it is good for the Premier League to give in to club’s requests.
He said to BBC Sport: “It will be odd for fans to have a game starting so late on a Sunday night, but the Premier League have caved in to teams who want a bit of extra rest after playing in Europe on Thursday.
“I am not sure the Premier League have thought this through, and they might have opened a can of worms here.
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“All teams like to complain about not getting enough rest, especially over Christmas, so the Premier League probably need to come up with a minimum time period that teams should have between games, and stick to it.”
Chelsea’s terrible record vs Brentford
Ironically, of all the clubs that need extra recovery time, Chelsea would actually rank quite low on that list.
A win against Brentford would be a welcome sight for Chelsea fans though, with them only beating them once in the six occasions they have met since their return to the Premier League.
Date Fixture Result Score Competition
16 Oct 2021 Brentford v Chelsea W 0-1 Premier League
02 Apr 2022 Chelsea v Brentford L 1-4 Premier League
19 Oct 2022 Brentford v Chelsea D 0-0 Premier League
26 Apr 2023 Chelsea v Brentford L 0-2 Premier League
28 Oct 2023 Chelsea v Brentford L 0-2 Premier League
02 Mar 2024 Brentford v Chelsea D 2-2 Premier League
One positive from this season would be looking at Brentford’s record away from home. Thomas Frank’s side have just one point on the road during this campaign.
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