Chelsea Collapse at Brentford as Defensive Woes Persist

Chelsea shipped three goals at Brentford on Friday, and once again it was not the attack that let them down first.

Jaidon Anthony broke the deadlock in the 61st minute, and Chelsea folded from there, losing 3-0. Alonso is now only the sixth manager in Premier League history to concede two or more goals in each of his first five league matches in charge.

Joao Pedro's absence hurt this time, too. The Brazilian striker missed out with a knee injury, and Danny Welbeck, in for him, made no impact. Cole Palmer had moments of quality and £117m signing Morgan Rogers featured, but the free-scoring attack that carried Chelsea through the opening weeks went quiet. Chelsea have not won in three league games and have conceded seven goals in that spell, 12 in total in the league this season plus three more in the Carabao Cup — the most in the division, though Chelsea have played a game more than their rivals.

Alonso brought in Jordan Henderson and Valentin Barco specifically to shore up midfield, and for roughly an hour it worked: Brentford were penned in at 1-0 while Chelsea struggled to fashion a clear chance. Both were booed throughout, Henderson as a former Brentford player and Barco over his conduct with Argentina at the World Cup. The added control seemed to come at the cost of the attacking thrust Chelsea had shown early in the campaign, and once Brentford went ahead, the old defensive frailties resurfaced.

Alonso has now handed out 11 debuts since taking charge, evidence of a squad still being reshaped without settling on a system.

Without that fix, further points may slip away once the season resumes.