So, this is how you kill a giant football club. Chelsea have been beaten for a 4th time already this season as they fell 2-0 to Brentford, further cementing their dreadful run under Todd Boehly.
I can’t believe Chelsea have been decimated so easily.
Despite spending another 500M in the past summer transfer window, Chelsea haven’t improved at all as they have just lost again with Brentford beating them 2-0. And, even though Chelsea has history and the last 20 years of success on their side, I fear the Blues are slowly sinking into a mid-table team.
It is honestly baffling how far Chelsea have fallen ever since Roman Abramovich sold the club to American billionaire and owner of the LA Dodgers Todd Boehly. In Abramovich’s last two seasons in charge of the club, Chelsea finished 4th (2020-21) and 3rd (2021-22), respectively, they reached the FA Cup final in back-to-back campaigns, they reached the EFL Cup final in 2022, they won the FIFA Club World Cup in 2022, they won the UEFA Supercup in 2022, and they won the club’s 2nd ever Champions League title in 2021.
Obviously, Chelsea wasn’t winning league titles (although they did win the Champions League LOL), but they were still a really successful, difficult, omnipresent, and serious challenger for the title in, well, every single season under Roman Abramovich’s late reign.
However, under Todd Boehly, Chelsea finished last season in 12th place (their worst since the 1993-94 season…which was a full decade prior to Abramovich’s purchase in 2003), they were eliminated from the FA Cup in the third round (their worst run since the 1997-98 campaign), they were eliminated from the EFL Cup also in the third round (their worst run since 2010-11), they were eliminated from the Champions League in the Quarterfinals, and their highest goal scorers (Raheem Sterling and Kai Havertz) scored a measly high of just 9 goals (the club’s worst record since the 1974/75 season…when they were relegated from the top flight).
And, as for this season, Chelsea do have an EFL Cup Round of 16 matchup against Blackburn Rovers this Wednesday, but they currently sit 11th in the league…with just 12 points. In fact, Chelsea’s 12 points puts them closer to 18th place and relegation fodder Luton Town (5 points) than it does 4th place and Champions League contender Liverpool (20 points). And their loss against Brentford today makes their situation even more dire.
There’s really not much to say about this game other than the usual Chelsea run down.
The opposing team (which happened to be Brentford) parked the bus, they forced Chelsea to hoard possession (69% possession today) and try to work the ball through their banks of five, Chelsea fired off nearly two dozen shots (17 shots) that pretty much all missed (2 shots on target) because their forwards couldn’t hit the broadside of a barn, Chelsea made a bone-headed defensive mistake to go down 1-0, and then they lost due to them not being able to score.
Sure, Chelsea had some great chances, such as Noni Madueke’s shot off the bar, Sterling’s smashing shot that went ten feet over the bar, and then Cole Palmer’s whiff attempt at the 82nd minute mark, and, yes, Chelsea’s defense also played very well against Brentford, but that’s not what has cursed the Blues in recent years. It’s the fact they CAN’T SCORE…and they always give up one stupid goal/game.
Ethan Pinnock’s game-winning header in the 58th minute was the result of Axel Diasis and Noni Madueke letting Pinnock get in behind them and pretty much scoring a wide-open, goal-line header. And, Bryan Mbeumo’s game-clinching goal in stoppage time was simply an empty-net tap in as Robert Sanchez had gotten forward (and impressively made it all the way back to almost save the goal) to try and tie the game late.
Despite all of the possession and shots at goal, Chelsea just has no fluidity, no cohesion, and really no character to their game or style of play as they’re always frantically probing around the opposing team’s goal, while their defense has stupid lapses of judgement moments. It’s the stuff that mid-table teams do all the time…and the stuff Chelsea haven’t had in their game since the dark times before Abramovich’s takeover.
But, as for Brentford, this was a great win for them as they push for another year of safety in the Premier League. With Luton Town, Sheffield United, and Burnley also in the division, I really don’t think Brentford is in any danger of getting relegated. Still, this was a great win for them and another step towards obtaining safety early.
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