Chelsea v Brentford – Preview, Predictions and Best Bets

The Blues have won just three of their last 13 matches. The Bees are flying high with five wins in their last six matches. Brentford sit two points above Chelsea in the league table.

Match: Chelsea v Brentford
When: Saturday, 17 Jan 2026

Chelsea Form

Chelsea are in poor form over the last couple of months. Their last 13 matches have seen just three wins. After losing 2-1 at home to Aston Villa and drawing 2-2 away to Bournemouth, coach Enzo Maresca was sacked. Chelsea went to Man City and scored late to rescue a 1-1 draw.

A 2-1 loss followed at Fulham as they played most of the match with ten men. The Blues thrashed Charlton 5-1 in the FA Cup in Liam Rosenior’s first match at the new coach. In midweek, they lost 3-2 at home to Arsenal in the first leg of the Carabao Cup semi-finals.

Chelsea Team News

Liam Rosenior has many problems to contend with. Romeo Lavia is injured in midfield and Levi Colwill is absent in midfield. Reece James, Cole Palmer and Malo Gusto need late fitness tests.

Moises Caicedo returns to the XI after suspension. Liam Delap and Jamie Gittens could miss out once again due to illness.

Chelsea Motivation

This is a massive match for Chelsea. They need to start off Rosenior’s reign with a league win.

With Brentford above Chelsea in the table, nothing less than a win will do. Chelsea will play an expansive, risky style under their new coach.

Brentford Form

The Bees had a tough start to December as they took one point from three league matches and exited the League Cup after a 2-0 loss at Man City. They’ve since had a golden run with five wins in six matches. They won 2-0 at Wolves and beat Bournemouth 4-1 at home in the league.

A 0-0 home draw vs Tottenham was followed by a 4-2 victory away at Everton. Last weekend, they put up 3.24 xG in a 3-0 home win over Sunderland. Last Saturday saw a dominant 2-0 win at Sheffield Wednesday in the FA Cup as they had 20 shots and 4.55 xG.

Brentford Team News

Coach Keith Andrews made eight changes for the last match. He is set to revert to the XI which beat Sunderland last weekend. Striker Igor Thiago returns after a rest and will look to build on his 16 league goals so far.

Fabio Carvalho, Antoni Milambo and Josh Dasilva are injured in midweek. Frank Onyeka is away at the AFCON but Dango Ouattara returns from international duty for this one.

Brentford Motivation

Brentford are flying right now. They’re playing with confidence and are creating loads of scoring chances.

They will go to Stamford Bridge with a clean plan and will try to win. A draw is also a good result here.

Key Stats

• Chelsea have won just 3 of their last 13 matches (5 losses, 5 draws)
• Chelsea have won 6 of their last 10 home matches
• Chelsea have won just 1 of their last 8 EPL matches vs Brentford (4 draws, 3 losses)
• Brentford have won 5 of their last 6 matches
• Brentford’s Igor Thiago has scored 16 EPL goals this season

Verdict

The Bees have every chance of leaving Stamford Bridge with a point. Both sides should score in the clash as Chelsea look leaky at the back.

Best Bet: Both Teams to Score at 1.60

Alternate Bet: Brentford win/draw double chance + Both Teams to Score at 3.20

Goalscorer Tip: Igor Thiago to score anytime at 2.60