Chelsea were unable to go top of the league for the time being after Fabio Carvahlio’s equalizer shattered the Blues' hearts. The Stamford Bridge outfit faced a Brentford side that had lost two of their main goal scorers, Bryan Mbuemo and Yoane Wissa, during the summer transfer window. However, despite that, the Blues looked vulnerable and open at the back against a newly invigorated Brentford attack.
Chelsea’s performance in the first half left a lot to be desired. The Bees were very organised, stubborn, and rigid at the back. The Blues struggled to break the hosts' wall down and they were devoid of any ideas. Maresca’s side elevated their performance in the second half, and they flipped the switch. However, a late Brentford goal stopped the visitors from taking all three points home.
Jamie Gittens is still raw, and the Chelsea fan base needs to be patient with him.
It was as clear as a crystal to see that Gittens was not on the same page or wavelength with the rest of his teammates. The winger found it challenging to get the better of Michael Kayode. To make matters worse for the 21-year-old, he only touched the ball 17 times in a space of 56 minutes. The former Borussia Dortmund player has not been able to take full advantage of the opportunities that Enzo Maresca has given him thus far. He hasn’t been able to be a nuisance, a threat, and a player that puts fear into the opposing right back's eyes. There is no denying the fact that he has a lot of room for improvement. On top of this, the winger has to get himself more involved in the match and create chaos down Chelsea’s left-hand side.
From the outside looking in, it looks like Gittens has the price tag on the back of his mind, and his confidence isn’t high at the moment. A portion of the Blues fanbase is jumping the gun and immediately drawing negative conclusions about the winger. It is exceptionally early to write Gittens or any new signing off for that matter at this stage of the season. However, Gittens has failed to make his mark, and he has been unable to grab any of the opening 4 games of the Premier League season by the scruff of the neck. It is vital for the youngster to ignore all the outside comments that are being made about him on social media and work on his craft.
Chelsea’s high line is a gigantic red flag and a massive cause for concern.
During the first 4 matches of the Premier League season, Chelsea have found it very challenging to stop their opponents from carving the defence wide open and to stop them from launching quick counter-attacks. Enzo Maresca wants his side to press high up the pitch. However, in order to master that system to a tee, it is vital to find a balance defensively. Fulham’s goal that was disallowed due to Rodrigo Muniz committing a foul on Chalobah came because the Blues centre-backs were completely out of position.
The Stamford Bridge outfit have got enormous warnings in previous fixtures, particularly against Fulham, and today, pushing their centre-backs high up the pitch was a recipe for disaster. Inevitably, the home side broke the deadlock courtesy of Kevin Schade in the 35th minute. The 23-year-old got in behind Chelsea’s defence and was composed in front of goal. That time, the Bees made the visitors pay for leaving Trevoh Chalobah and Tosin on an island and in 1 vs 1 situations against two pacy/tricky players, such as Kevin Schade and Igor Thiago.
Brentford kept sending diagonal and direct passes behind Chelsea’s high line, and it worked like a charm for them. If anything, they could have scored at least 1 more goal in the same fashion if they were more ruthless and clinical in the final third.
Enzo Maresca has to find a solution in the training ground to stop the opposing teams from carving Chelsea’s defence wide open. It is blatantly clear to see that opposing teams are exploiting the space that Chelsea is leaving behind their own half, especially when they lose the ball in the midfield. The Blues are too open in that area of the pitch. It is vital for the Stamford Bridge outfit to resolve this issue before other managers and teams take advantage of this particular flaw that Maresca’s side has.
Chelsea’s rotated side lacked creativity and urgency in the first half.
The visitors were very lethargic, static and were unable to be fluid in the opening 45 minutes of the game. Chelsea did not get out of first gear, and they were devoid of any ideas further up the pitch. Brentford were compact, robust, and kept their shape defensively. The hosts executed Keith Andrews' instructions to a tee. However, the Blues failed to stamp their authority in the game, and Brentford were not put under any immense pressure during the first half.
The most successful way of breaking down supremely low blocks is to break the lines, pass the ball with urgency, and make runs in behind. Chelsea didn’t do any of those three aspects during the game. Instead, despite having a lot of possession in the Bees half, the Blues' rhythm was low, and they kept passing the ball sideways and backwards.
That made it straightforward for Brentford to keep their defensive line and shape. Chelsea should have upped the tempo in order to put the hosts under the cosh. Another way to do that is by having the courage to take more risks on the ball and try to pull off the difficult passes, instead of taking the simple option, which was to pass to a player who was open 5-10 yards away.
As a last resort option, because it was a tall task to get in behind the Bees' defence, the Blues should have taken more shots from the edge of the box to give Caoimhin Kelleher a run for his money. Players such as Joao Pedro, Jamie Gittens, and Facundo Buonanotte had some opportunities to test the Irish international from distance, but they did not pull the trigger.
Breaking down low blocks has been an Achilles heel in previous seasons for the Stamford Bridge oufit. That issue continued against Crystal Palace in the opening match of the Premier League season and as well as in the first half today. Struggling to break down teams that put 11 men behind the ball has come back to haunt Chelsea time and time again. Today, this wasn’t the only reason why Chelsea dropped two points, but it certainly was a factor. The Stamford Bridge outfit has to come up with a methodology to break down organised teams, because this is still an issue that Chelsea has not fully fixed.
Chelsea has to start off matches with more desire, energy, and urgency.
The Blues have to be better at the start of matches. In the first 20 minutes or even in the first half, Chelsea do not start matches in the right way. They are lacklustre, lethargic, and allow the opposing teams to get a foothold in the game. Against Crystal Palace and Fulham, they allowed those two sides to gain momentum, play at their own pace, and dictate the game.
Today, that issue reared its ugly head again. If the Blues want to go toe to toe with Arsenal and Liverpool in particular for the Premier League title, then they have to find a way to set the tone early in matches. Starting off games like a bat out of hell will not only put the other team on the back foot, but it will limit them from mastering their game plan to perfection. Chelsea got away with starting off slow against Fulham because they got let off the hook. After all, Joshua King’s goal was disallowed due to a foul on Trevoh Chalobah in the build-up.
Today, the Stamford Bridge outfit made the same mistake and suffered the consequences. The challenge for the Blues moving forward is to put together great and complete performances from the first minute until the last. That is easier said than done, but if this Chelsea side wants to bridge the gap on the Gunners and the Reds, then they have to be a lot more consistent throughout matches.
So far in the opening four fixtures of the new campaign, **Enzo Maresca**’s side has only dominated 1 game from the first whistle until the last, and that was against West Ham. Thankfully, from the Blues' point of view, the other three matches did not run away from them.
However, there could be times when Chelsea put themselves in massive holes and have a mountain to climb because they don’t start the game with the right focus levels, attitude, and rhythm. The famous old saying is “it’s not about how you start, it's about how you finish”. However, bringing the heat and spice right from the get-go will only elevate and skyrocket the Blues' chances of putting the game to bed early.