Chelsea 1-4 Brentford: Three lessons learnt in frustrating defeat
Chelsea was beaten by Brentford for the first time since 1939 on Saturday in what was an utterly embarrassing showing from the home side. The combination of the off-field noise, international break and inspired underdog opponents proved too much for Thomas Tuchel’s side as they dropped just their fifth game of the season in all competitions. The game had the same feel as last season’s puzzling defeat to West Bromwich Albion as the Stamford Bridge faithful were left speechless. It was a horrendous outing from everyone in blue. Simply put, there are no excuses for the all-around flat performance.
The Blues took the lead via an Antonio Rudiger screamer early in the second half after a sluggish (at best) first half showing. Nevertheless, the Bees hit back with three goals in quick succession to stun the reigning Champions of Europe. Former Tottenham standout Christian Eriksen was pulling all of the strings in the middle of the park for Brentford as he came back to haunt his old foes. Tuchel’s men squandered every good opportunity they had on the day as they conceded more than three goals for the second time under the German manager. Suffice it to say, it was a day to forget in SW6.
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Here are three lessons we learnt in Chelsea’s 4-1 loss to Brentford:
1. Antonio Rudiger can’t do everything
If insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting a different result, Rudiger is an absolute madman. The German centerhalf has been taking long-range shots for as long as Chelsea fans can remember. His efforts each match are the equivalent to the free space in the center of a bingo card and these curlers have been a staple of almost every Blues contest this campaign. There isn’t a Chelsea supporter on the planet who hasn’t said—at least once—there would come a time where Rudiger found the back of the net this season.
That day was Saturday.
The game in which Rudiger would finally score a worldie was supposed to be one filled with joy. However, things began to spiral downhill faster than anyone could fathom once the 29-year-old defied the laws of physics and beat David Raya to give the Blues a 1-0 advantage.
It’s common knowledge amongst football fans that the most dangerous time to concede is immediately following one’s team scoring a goal. Thus, it’s understandable that Rudiger was still over the moon and his mind was elsewhere after he scored on a shot with a 0.01 xG value. Brentford responded to his screamer just minutes later on a passage of play Rudiger surely could’ve done better on. But it’s the events that transpired after that shocked spectators. Rudiger and the rest of the Chelsea back line seemingly switched off for the entire second half. They were uncharacteristically bad as they let a relegation-scrapping side (probably a little harsh on the Bees, but as of a few weeks ago, this was the case) find the back of the net four times on the day.
Saturday’s performance showed that Rudiger upset the balance in the universe when his stunner rattled the back of the net. The German is an elite central defender, higher powers are just preventing him from becoming too strong by adding an attacking output to his game. Rudiger’s abysmal defensive showing against Brentford just goes to show that he cannot do everything at once. I think I speak for all Chelsea fans when I say I’d prefer he stick to his defensive duties and leave the goalscoring to the others. If not, the football deities could punish the Blues once more.