Chelsea vs Brentford Prediction: Back both teams to strike early at the Bridge

There's a west London derby taking place at Stamford Bridge on Sunday evening (19:00) as Chelsea host Brentford. Both clubs are in good form heading into this fixture with the hosts on a four-game win streak in the Premier League and the visitors suffering just one defeat in their last five matches.

Below is my Chelsea vs Brentford prediction, complete with team news and match odds.

Team News

Chelsea took a youthful squad to Kazakhstan for Thursday's 3-1 win over FC Astana in Almaty, with the likes of Cole Palmer, Nicolas Jackson, Moises Caicedo and Marc Cucurella all left back at home.

Enzo Maresca is set to revert to his preferred starting XI on Sunday meaning the aforementioned quartet, alongside fellow first-teamers such as Robert Sanchez and Levi Colwill, should return.

However, Pedro Neto, who played the first half of the Blues' midweek victory in the Uefa Conference League, is suspended after picking up his fifth Premier League booking of the season in last weekend's win at Tottenham Hotspur, which should open up a vacancy for Noni Madueke to fill on the right wing.

Wesley Fofana and Reece James are still injured, however, while Romeo Lavia could be absent after being withdrawn at half-time last Sunday, so Malo Gusto could start at Stamford Bridge.

Football Odds

Brentford are missing Rico Henry, Aaron Hickey, Gustavo Jensen and Josh Dasilva, while Mathias Jensen is a doubt after missing the past two matches. The availability of Vitaly Janelt is also uncertain after the German midfielder missed last Saturday's 4-2 win over Newcastle United.

Thomas Frank handed a start to Fabio Carvalho against the Magpies but Mikkel Damsgaard could be restored to the starting XI at his expense on Sunday.

Chelsea vs Brentford Odds

*Please click on the link above to be taken to the main Chelsea vs Brentford page on betfred.com (or app) for all the live betting prices on this match.

Brentford have won all three games at Stamford Bridge since earning promotion to the Premier League in 2021, but after taking just a single point from their opening seven away outings this season, the Bees are 15/2, or an 11.8 per cent chance, to chalk up a fourth straight victory at the Bridge. Chelsea, meanwhile, are 1/3 (75% implied win probability) to record back-to-back home victories after beating Aston Villa 3-0 last time out in west London.

The draw is priced at 5/1, both teams to score at 8/15, and over 2.5 total goals at 1/3.

Palmer (5/6) and Jackson (21/20) are favourites in the anytime goalscorer market, with Bryan Mbeumo, Igor Thiago and Yoane Wissa (all 13/5) first up for the visitors.

Both Teams to Score in First Half - Yes @ 9/4

There have been seven occasions this season in which both teams have scored in the first half of a Premier League game involving Brentford - only Manchester City (also seven) have seen BTTS land in the first half as many times, with 47 per cent of their top-flight contests featuring a first-half strike on either side.

Chelsea aren't too far down the BTTS first-half table as 33 per cent (five) of their 15 league matches have seen both teams find the net before the interval. The majority (three) have come away from Stamford Bridge, but all six goals in their 4-2 home win over Brighton & Hove Albion on September 28 were scored inside the first 42 minutes, and they were drawing 1-1 with Newcastle United at half-time in west London on October 27 before Palmer struck a second-half winner.

In contrast to Chelsea, both teams to score in the first half has been more common for Brentford at home, with 28.6 per cent (two) of their seven away games seeing a goal before half-time for either side. However, those two matches were against 'elite' opposition in Manchester City and Tottenham Hotspur, which provides more hope ahead of a trip to second-place Chelsea.

Bet Builder - Cole Palmer (CHE) Anytime Goalscorer, Enzo Fernandez (CHE) 1+ Shots on Target, Brentford Over 7.5 Shots @ 9/2

Brentford were one of the few teams to escape the goalscoring wrath of Palmer last season, so you can bet that the 22-year-old will be going all out to fire his first career goal against the Bees on Sunday.

The Man City Academy graduate has scored 11 times in 15 Premier League appearances this season and is looking to strike in a fourth consecutive game this weekend after bagging a brace in last Sunday's 4-3 win at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.

Brentford have shipped 14 goals in seven top-flight away matches this term and may struggle to keep Palmer from finding the net this time around.

Another player in great goalscoring form lately for Chelsea is Argentine midfielder Enzo Fernandez, who has struck in three of his last four appearances. The World Cup winner had been on the fringes of things, at least from a starting XI point of view, but has reemerged as a key component of this Blues side under Maresca, who has positioned Lavia and Moises Caicedo at the base of midfield to allow Fernandez to flourish further forward.

The 23-year-old has started 10 times in the Premier League this season and has registered a shot on target in half (five) of those games, so looks a decent shout to at least test Mark Flekken in the Brentford goal on Sunday.

The third and final selection of this Bet Builder requires Brentford to take at least eight shots, something they have managed in five of their seven away outings so far.

The Bees have recorded over 7.5 shots against Man City and Liverpool (both eight) at the Etihad and Anfield, respectively, and hit the same number against Manchester United at Old Trafford. The only two occasions in which they've failed to meet that threshold is against Spurs (six) at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, where they went in front in the first minute, and against Fulham at Craven Cottage, where they led up from the 24th minute up until the second minute of second-half added time.

Chelsea, meanwhile, have conceded at least nine shots in all seven league games at Stamford Bridge this season.

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