Brentford

Pat Nevin
Former footballer and presenter

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The fact that Arsenal are not invincible has clearly come as a bit of a surprise to some people.

They were thumped by Brighton at the weekend, while Brentford hammered Chelsea to go fourth and Bournemouth narrowly lost to Liverpool.

The three little Bs, who I wrote about more than once last season, are at it again, fearlessly going for blood against the big dogs.

Both Brighton and Brentford will sit in the top four for the three weeks of the international break, with Bournemouth finding their feet under a new manager.

Their success should now not be surprising. In the last four seasons Brighton have averaged an eighth-place league finish - astonishing for a smaller provincial club outwith the major cities.

Arsenal's three-goal capitulation was initially a shock, but should it still be a surprise down at Brighton?

This season, the Seagulls have also scored three against Chelsea and Manchester United, four against Tromso and Aston Villa while slapping Coventry with five.

This does not look like a lucky run of form or a purple patch on the pitch; this looks like who they are now.

Bournemouth were sixth last season and I think Brighton could do even better than that this time round.

The likes of Chelsea, Liverpool and Villa are each capable of getting their acts together after early stumbles, but the chance of reaching the Champions League has never seemed so achievable for the more pocket-sized Premier League clubs.

During the second half of the recent Carabao Cup demolition of Manchester United at Old Trafford, I started to think "this team is very special".

The Reds had a few youngsters playing that night, but after going 2-0 down Fabian Hurzeler's men played some of the cleverest, quickest, most intricate passing football I have seen in years.

The incredible pace with which they pressed the opposition only added to the heady, unstoppable mix.

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BBC Sport pundit Chris Sutton says "it will be really interesting to see how far" Brighton and Brentford can challenge for a top-six finish in the Premier League.

Brighton and Brentford sit third and fourth in the Premier League table respectively following strong starts to the 2026-27 season.

"If you look at the start Brighton have had, the depth they have and the way they play then it will be really interesting to see how far they go," said Sutton on BBC Radio 5 Live's Monday Night Club.

"I am slightly reluctant about Brentford because I don't think they've done as much business as Brighton and had a big influx of players.

"That means they have to be on the right side of injuries like they were last season. That's a big deal because you need the strength and depth to really go deep and long into a season."

The Observer's Rory Smith added: "Brighton have said that because they are in Europe they set out to have a deeper squad than normal this season. Brentford just missed out on Europe so that might be the explanation for why one is busier [in the market] than the other.

"I think their models are different. Brentford aren't really about signing players to sell them on as much as Brighton are.

"Bryan Mbeumo was a big one, but it's not their priority.

"I'm sure Mamadou Sangare will go for a huge sum of money in the next year or two, and Igor Thiago if he can keep his scoring ratio up, but the market they shop in shows their priority isn't reselling like Brighton."

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Dale Johnson
Football issues correspondent

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Most squads in the Premier League these days are packed with international players, and Brentford are no different.

Most of the Bees' squad are away, but Callum Wilson and Igor Thiago are among about 12 players left at their training facility, including five who are coming back from injury.

Brentford have a longer break than almost every other team, given they hosted Chelsea on Friday.

Boss Keith Andrews has given his first-team players a week off with individual training programmes to follow. Those players will not have restrictions on leaving the country, but it is unlikely long-haul flights would be sanctioned.

The squad will reconvene on Saturday, 26 September to begin training again, before playing a behind-closed-doors game against another English club on the weekend of 3 October.

That friendly could potentially give the likes of Nathan Collins and Sepp van den Berg a chance to return to action, with the rest of the squad made up of under-21 players.

The second international break will look very different, with the Bees playing Brighton on Sunday, 8 November and back in action against Everton on Saturday, 21 November.

Players may be given the odd day off, but in general it will be a normal training programme with no friendly before the usual preparation for the fixture against the Toffees.

Read the full piece here

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Portsmouth defender Benjamin Arthur is set to be out for 12 weeks with a stress fracture in his back.

Arthur signed for Pompey on a season-long loan from Brentford in August and has played six games for the club this season.

But the 20-year-old was absent from the matchday line-up for their 2-2 draw with Blackburn.

"Benji's picked up a stress fracture in his back unfortunately; a massive blow to Benji, a massive blow to us as well," manager John Mousinho told BBC Radio Solent.

"That's going to be one that keeps him out for quite a few weeks - we're probably looking at at least 12."

We asked for your thoughts after Friday's Premier League game between Brentford and Chelsea.

Here are some of your comments:

Brentford fans

Campbell: Fantastic win; Damsgaard outstanding, Keane Lewis-Potter was also very good. Took on and beat Chelsea in midfield and never reverted to a low block; a clear sign of the development of the team under Andrews.

Vivek: Brilliant game from the Bees. I think that we had conviction and shut down Chelsea really well and when we did, we found gaps and space for counters which is a strong point for us. Brilliant game and evening if you're a Brentford fan and I hope we see more.

Conor: Wow, wow, wow, just wow!! What a beautiful game of football. Schade on form is massive to see, Thiago's first league goal, incredible and Carvalho. Who says Brentford are the only team yet to get to Europe? The season is only getting started. My blood pressure has shot through the roof.

Sampson: Absolutely incredible performance last night. A deserved win, with most players having a great game, especially Damsgaard, Schade and Schuster. Bring on Villa!

Chelsea fans

Richard: All I have heard of the last three years is about the process, fed up with it tbh. When is this going to be sorted? We need to be braver going forward, and not be bullied like we were in the second half. I couldn't believe that second-half performance, so many players weren't at it. We had a decent first half to be fair. It needs to be sorted, and that's down to the management to get it right - no more excuses.

Alan: This was just about the worst match I've seen this season. The defence was a total unorganised mess with no leader. Lacroix was hopeless and Colwill ran circles round himself. As for Martinez, you can see why he was cheap to buy. Henderson played well for his first game back after injury, but where was James? It was a poor night for Palmer. He will need to be better than this to keep his England place. If we are going to win anything, a major sort out at the back is needed.

David: Chelsea were shown on the night the difference between a team of players that play with heart and a desire to win and a team of so-called skilful individuals who were second best and bullied off every ball. We are easy to beat.

Ash: So poor and zero cutting edge. The fact we are playing old men showed and these should be subs, not starters. Alonso needs to get a grip on the defence as they are easily the worst in the Premier League. The break actually helps somewhat as something needs to change and they can work on it.

Brentford starting XI:

Caoimhin Kelleher: An accomplished display, although he was never required to make any outstanding saves. 6

Michael Kayode: Played a couple of sloppy passes and rarely ventured forward. 6

Kristoffer Ajer: A sizeable presence at the back despite coming under significant pressure from crosses in open play and from set-pieces. 7

Jannik Schuster: The young defender excelled in his own box but looked nervous in possession on a few occasions, including an overhit backpass that could have led to an own goal. He then set up the winner. 7

Keane Lewis-Potter: A poor clearance led to a Neto chance in the 10th minute, but he was impressive on the counter-attack. That perhaps owed something to his experience of learning the left-back role after previously playing as an attacker. 6

Yehor Yarmoliuk: On his 100th appearance, he threatened with a powerful long-range effort in the 37th minute and created Brentford's best chance shortly after half-time. 7

Vitaly Janelt: Did just enough to halt a Cole Palmer dribble early on, although he risked conceding a penalty. He provided a physical presence in midfield, with a potential Germany debut on the horizon under new manager Jurgen Klopp. 7

Mikkel Damsgaard: The Dane was not at his usual level from set-pieces or with his shooting from distance until he delivered an incredible whipped corner that led to the opening goal. 6

Kevin Schade: The in-form forward produced several pressure-relieving dribbles and had a shot blocked in the first half. Played a part in the final two goals. 7

Igor Thiago: The Brazil international was on a four-game goalless run before kick-off and worked hard but struggled in front of goal. He eventually delivered with a late strike to seal victory and his celebration looked like a weight then lifted off his shoulders, along with his Brentford shirt. 7

Jaidon Anthony: After a quiet first half, he missed his side's best chance early in the second half but responded well to score the opener. 7

Brentford substitutes:

Mamadou Sangare (on 72, Yarmoliuk): Did his combative duties well. 7

Aaron Hickey (on 72, Kayode): A steady presence. 6

El Hadji Malick Diouf (on 81, Lewis-Potter): N/A

Dango Ouattara (on 81, Anthony): N/A

Fabio Carvalho (on 87, Damsgaard): Ghosted in nicely to add a goal late on in a very short spell on the pitch. 7

Subs not used: Ballcombe, Henry, Wilson, Frederick

Read the full article and see how you rated the players

Brentford manager Keith Andrews speaking to MOTD after his side's 3-0 win: "I feel like I have played. It was a really good evening, it's important that you enjoy evenings like this because you work so hard and there are so many tough days in this game and when you play against a west London rival, and you build up to a game and you go on a bit of a journey with the team, there are always bumps along the way, but we were in a really good place and it's nice to see it come into fruition tonight."

On Brentford's versatility: "The second goal was crucial obviously. The first goal was from a set piece. I think with the way we play that we are unpredictable, and we can score and play in different ways. When we are in control of games, in possession we can look to create and cause chaos for the opposition, but even from defending deep from certain situations we have serious counter attacking threat so I like a lot of what we do."

On Chelsea: "I thought Chelsea set up in a really respectful way. They paid a lot of attention to our strengths. Igor Thiago being one of them. He found it difficult to get space at times in the first half. You have to be patience and do the right thing. With the boys habits and the values we have as a club and a team, I think it all comes out consistently, and you can start to see that now where we are as a team."

On a good start to the season: "It's amazing the way one game dictates if it's an okay start or a really good start, but yeah, it's been a good start. We have been competitive, we have had to dig deep, we have had to show loads of different traits in the opening weeks of the season which is what you always have to do in this league. We can have a little reflection now of the opening few weeks as the boys go off in their different directions."

Fabio Carvalho scoring in consecutive games after injury: "The worst part of being a footballer is when you're injured and he's been unbelievable in his approach to it, in his professionalism, and he's comeback really seamlessly into the fold. He looks really sharp, really strong. To get that important goal tonight was nice for him and really special."

Brentford defender Jannik Schuster speaking to Sky Sports: "I think when the second half began we played it more directly forward and we scored after that so I'm just happy.

On being player of the match: "I don't care about my performance. I just want to help the team, get the clean sheet and the three points. Hopefully I get many more minutes."

On the assist for the first goal: "They always tell me I have a potential on set pieces but there wasn't a lot of outcome on this until now. Hopefully I can score next time."

Did you know?

• Brentford have played seven Premier League games on a Friday and won six of them, conceding just one goal in the process. Their points-per-game average of 2.71 on Fridays is the best of any side to play 3+ games on a specific day of the week in the competition's history.

• Brentford have won three of their last four London derbies in the Premier League, as many as their previous 21 beforehand.

Sam Drury
BBC Sport journalist

Image source, Getty Images

Three weeks without a game is not something any Premier League fan is looking forward to, but Brentford supporters can at least spend the forthcoming international break reflecting on their side's excellent start to the season.

It is now six games unbeaten to start 2026-27 and, for now at least, they are looking down on all but Arsenal and Manchester City in the table.

Arguably, Brentford's biggest strength is their adaptability - finding the approach that is best suited for any given game or opponent.

On Friday, that largely meant keeping their discipline and picking their moments to hit Chelsea on the counter-attack.

For much of the first half, they struggled with the second part and yet they were rarely troubled with summer signing Schuster key at the heart of the defence.

The 20-year-old Austrian was invariably in the right place to snuff out Chelsea attacks, won his duels and even popped up with an assist at the other end.

Already he looks another shrewd signing.

At the other end of the pitch, there will have been a huge amount of relief around the Gtech when Igor Thiago calmly tucked away the second goal.

After playing a starring role with 22 league goals last season, the Brazil striker has looked short of confidence so far this campaign.

Having now got off the mark, the hope that he can kick on again when the league resumes in October.

Whether you were at the game or following from elsewhere, we want to know what you learned.

Have your say on Brentford's performance

What did you make of Chelsea's display?

Reaction and analysis to follow - and come back on Saturday for a selection of your replies.

Sami Mokbel
Senior football correspondent

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Liverpool are speaking to external candidates as part of their search for a new sporting director, with Brentford technical director Lee Dykes among the candidates the club has met.

It is understood the Reds are minded to make an internal appointment, with current technical director Julian Ward believed to be a strong candidate to replace Richard Hughes, whose departure for Al-Hilal was confirmed at the start of the month.

Fenway Sports Group president Mike Gordon is leading the process.

As well as Dykes, Brentford sporting director Phil Giles is also admired, but luring him away from west London is likely to be difficult.

FSG has spoken to other external candidates in addition to Dykes, who has played a key role in the Bees' consolidation as a Premier League side following their promotion in 2021, having arrived at the club in May 2019.

Matthew Hobbs
BBC Sport journalist

Unbeaten Brentford host a Chelsea side struggling for consistency under manager Xabi Alonso.

BBC Sport examines some of the key themes going into their meeting at Gtech Community Stadium on Friday night.

Brentford continued their unbeaten start to the season with a hard-fought Carabao Cup win at Reading on Tuesday. Next on their agenda will be a return to winning ways in the Premier League.

The Bees have turned into something of a draw specialist in the top flight, with 10 of their past 14 Premier League fixtures ending level, including three of four this season.

They have opened the scoring in all four matches before being pegged back in the past three, conceding late equalisers in 1-1 draws with both Leeds United and Sunderland.

And this fixture in particular tends to produce a stalemate. Brentford are winless in all five home London derbies against Chelsea in the Premier League, with the most recent four ending level.

If Brentford are to right that record, targeting set-pieces could be a useful strategy. Only Leeds have a higher expected goals tally from set-pieces this season, while Chelsea have the seventh-highest total against (1.57).

Chelsea's chaotic start under Xabi Alonso continued with a 2-2 draw with Hull City at Stamford Bridge last weekend.

They have let in 12 goals in five games against Premier League opposition this season, including the 6-3 EFL Cup win over Leeds, conceding at least twice in each of those matches.

Defensive issues, though, predate Alonso's arrival, with Chelsea failing to keep a clean sheet in the league since January.

The summer signing of goalkeeper Emi Martinez from Aston Villa was supposed to bring an element of calm to a vulnerable backline but only Ipswich Town, Crystal Palace and Coventry City have conceded more goals so far, while Chelsea are ceding clear opportunities to opposing teams.

They have faced the joint-most shots on target (26) of any top-flight side in 2026-27. Only winless Fulham have faced more big chances than Chelsea's 15, evidencing how open they can be to play against.

Like Brentford, Alonso's side have opened the scoring in all four league outings this season, so the result of this meeting may rest on who best manages going ahead.

Chelsea can take confidence from a good recent record in this fixture after going unbeaten in the past five meetings (W2, D3). They can also call on the services of the Premier League's most in-form forward to help continue that record.

Joao Pedro has scored three goals and assisted three in this season's Premier League, two more goal involvements than any other player.

Should the Brazilian falter on this occasion, Danny Welbeck is waiting in the wings. The 35-year-old has already scored three EFL Cup goals following his summer move from Brighton, but he is yet to open his account in the Premier League.

Welbeck, though, has scored in his past three Premier League meetings with the Bees.

Chelsea are free-scoring and their frontline is so dynamic, but they are leaking goals left, right and centre - and they are a bit of a rabble at the back.

I do think Chelsea will stop conceding eventually, but finding the right balance between defence and attack is Xabi Alonso's big problem at the moment. It is far too easy to create chances against his side.

Brentford boss Keith Andrews has got that balance in his team. They are very dangerous on the counter-attack, so you have to think they will hurt Chelsea too.

This fixture finished in a 2-2 draw in September last year, and I can see it going the same way this time.

Sutton's prediction: 2-2

Read the full predictions and have your say here

Nat Hayward
BBC Sport journalist

Brentford boss Keith Andrews has been speaking to the media before Friday's Premier League game against Chelsea at The Gtech Community Stadium (20:00 BST).

Here are the key lines from his news conference:

• Mathias Jensen, Nathan Collins, Sepp van den Berg and Josh DaSilva will miss the game but they are targeting a return after the international break, while there are no new injuries to report.

• Young striker Kaye Furo had surgery on his metatarsal on Monday and is now "in a good place".

• On Kevin Schade's fine start to the season, which has earned him a Germany call-up: "He's been in there before so he's used to that setup. A different manager now of course, one that's very used to the Premier league so I'm sure he'd have been very aware. Kev has been in a really good rhythm, a really good place in his game. He's working really hard with the coaches to improve certain parts of his game and I think we've seen that in how he's been performing."

• On Vitaly Janelt, who earned his first international call-up for Jurgen Klopp's Germany squad: "Since I took over as head coach, I've loved working with him. His value to me is huge. He absolutely deserves it. The levels he's produced in the toughest league in the world is pretty remarkable."

• Andrews praised the morale currently within his squad: "I love this place. I say to the players all the time that we don't realise how lucky we are. We have a sign above the boot room that says exactly that; how lucky we are to be at an amazing place and be part of a special, special group."

• On the derby against neighbours Chelsea: "It'll be an entertaining game. Both teams are in a pretty good place and playing some good football. There will be a lot of talented players on show for both sides. It'll be an enthralling derby."

• Andrews was asked about new fan flags at Brentford's stadium and a donation made to a supporters group by captain Collins: "It's genuine, real and isn't forced in any way. I was delighted when I heard what [the fans] were doing. That engagement and feeling is nice to witness when we come out. It sums up where we are as a club that our captain has made that donation."

• On last season's top scorer Igor Thiago, who is yet to find the net so far in the new campaign: "It's always important not to let the noise impact what you do, how you do it and why you do it - whether that's good noise or slightly negative noise. I'm really comfortable with where he is and how he came back from the World Cup. We shouldn't lose sight of what he achieved last season and the mountain he climbed to do what he did for us. We value him so much as a player, not just because of his goals. He's in a good place and he's enjoying his football. He loves being here and we love having him here."

Follow all of Thursday's Premier League news conferences and the rest of the day's football news

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The draw for the Carabao Cup fourth round has been made. Here is a list of all the ties in the order they were drawn.

• Fleetwood Town v Arsenal

• Manchester City/Norwich v Brighton

• Everton v Newcastle

• Sunderland v Brentford

• Liverpool v Chelsea

• Bradford v Peterborough

• Fulham v Crystal Palace

• Bournemouth v Aston Villa

The matches will be played in the week commencing 26 October.

Image source, Getty Images

We asked for your views on Brentford's 2-1 Carabao Cup third round win at League One Reading on Tuesday.

Here are some of your comments:

Ian: The Bees seem to be scraping results at the moment (three Premier League leads ending in draws and a 2-1 win over Reading), however, it is easy to be critical. I do not think they have 'hit the boards running' but with matches coming up against some of the so called 'big guns', it may spark them into action!

Douglas: Every Brentford supporter expects them to win by a hatful of goals, but that can't always happen. A professional performance which shows their class. This will be our year.

Paul: Brentford were fortunate to beat a hard working, mostly reserve Reading side. They will need to up their game in the next round.

Baz: We got away with one here - shooting practice in the morning a priority.

Nigel: The Bees totally dominated the ball, and missed a handful of good chances, but looked susceptible to Reading's long throws and corners. Both disallowed goals should have been allowed. You could see the difference in class but the last 10 minutes were very uncomfortable.

Ethan: It was a shaky performance, but we got through and that's all I care about.

George: Credit to Reading - we both had unfairly disallowed goals at either end of the game but theirs was gorgeous. Our service into the box needed a little work, and when we did get it, our one-on-one finishing is not what it used to be. Job done but we do need to get back to playing with surety and efficiency.

Paul: Very poor performance, defending set-pieces were dreadful. Thought they were playing with a beach ball the shots went that high. There's something not quite right at the Bees at the moment. Oh, and Thiago's body language on the pitch is dreadful - he needs a kick up the backside.

Image source, Getty Images

Brentford boss Keith Andrews on reaching the fourth-round of the Carabao Cup: "We took it very seriously in the last round and we did again tonight. It's a serious competition for us, we want to go as far as we can. There's no reason why we can't. We're going to attack it as hard as we can."

On the officiating in the match: "It's been a tough week for officials as everybody is probably aware. I think we just need to let them ref the game and be human beings and make decisions because we have gone through a period in the game where I feel like they weren't actually making decisions in both boxes because if the technology we have in the game and I feel like that is a real shame.

"I always felt as a player when there was a relationship with an official that was built on respect and being able to speak to each other in a certain way, we've gone away from allowing them to officiate and allowing them to make mistakes and I think it is a real shame. Now they are having to go back to that and it's not the habits they have had in recent years."

On how alarming it is that there wasn't a check on Enzo Fernandez being offside for Manchester City's goal in the Manchester derby: "It's pretty alarming. The first thing was whether [Erling] Haaland was offside and then obviously [Enzo] Fernandez was. It's a shame."

Whether you were at the game or following from elsewhere, we want to know what you learned.

Have your say on Brentford's performance here

Reaction to follow - and come back on Wednesday for a selection of your replies.

There are five Carabao Cup third-round ties on Tuesday and BBC Sport will bring you every moment.

• Peterborough v Barnsley (19:30)

• West Ham v Fulham (19:45)

• Liverpool v Tottenham - listen on BBC Radio 5 Live

• Ipswich v Arsenal - listen on BBC Radio 5 Sports Extra 2

• Reading v Brentford

Kick-off times 20:00 BST unless stated

Follow all the action and reaction here

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Brentford boss Keith Andrews has been speaking to the media before Tueday's Carabao Cup third round game against League One side Reading at The Select Car Leasing Stadium (20:00 BST).

Here are the key lines from his news conference:

• Andrews confirmed he intended to start 19-year-old striker Kaye Furo, who won the Premier League 2 Player of the Month award, on Tuesday but the youngster picked up an injury in the last few days and had to undergo surgery on Monday.

• Providing more detail, he added: "Unfortunately for him, he's had to have an operation this morning. The timing of an injury is obviously never good for a player, but I felt he was just coming into a really good place with his game. That's really frustrating for him. I would've started him against Reading because I felt he deserved it and was in that type of space. I'm not sure how long he's going to be out for but we'll obviously look after him and get him back to a good place."

• However, young defender Benjamin Fredrick will be involved against the Royals: "He hasn't had a lot of football but has come back in the last couple of weeks. We decided not to play him in the B team game on Sunday to make sure he was in the right place to be available for our game against Reading. I anticipate he'll be involved."

• On the importance of the Carabao Cup: "We've got 5000 fans going to the game. That for me says it all - the belief the fans have that we are taking it very seriously. We did it last year. We pushed as hard as we could. We didn't get to where we wanted to but that's the plan this year."

• On his side's start to the season: "The way I look at the last few weeks is that we set the bar very, very high in some games and we haven't quite hit that level. We are a team that is very respected now and with that comes a different type of pressure to perform and get results."

• Asked what has been his favourite aspect of his first 50 games in charge of the Bees, Andrews said: "Seeing the team and the group grow and evolve and mature and gain a really nice way of working together. That is underpinned on trust and belief. I just love the journey we have been on together. I have tried to learn and evolve and be really demanding of our group, but also really supportive."

• On Tuesday's opponents Reading: "We have to pay the opposition ultimate respect, and that's something we do really well. Players are always very aware who they're up against and what it will feel like. We need to play our game. Reading will have their plan, I have watched them from afar. We will have to play really well."

Got a question about Brentford? Get in touch here and we'll seek answers from our experts