Cole Palmer was left on the bench for almost an hour as Chelsea’s winless run on the road continued with a goalless draw at Brentford.
Blues boss Enzo Maresca raised eyebrows by leaving the England forward out of his starting line-up despite his side battling for a Champions League place.
They do have a Conference League quarter-final trip to Legia Warsaw on Thursday, but Maresca’s priorities seemed a little skewed following a pretty insipid stalemate.
Goalless. #CFC | #BRECHE pic.twitter.com/uaxVsxhqBY
— Chelsea FC (@ChelseaFC) April 6, 2025
When Palmer was eventually introduced he was unable to help break the deadlock, firing his only opportunity over the crossbar, in what was probably the most predictable draw of the season.
With Brentford having forgotten how to win at home and Chelsea winless away in the league since December, surely something had to give at the Gtech Stadium? Unfortunately, nothing did.
Brentford, as usual, were in the faces of Chelsea from the the first whistle, with Bryan Mbeumo and Kevin Schade perpetually getting in behind Blues full-backs Reece James and Malo Gusto.
Amid the organised havoc wreaked by Thomas Frank’s side, Yoane Wissa had two early chances, hooking the first into the side-netting from Mbeumo’s cross before seeing a shot blocked by Trevoh Chalobah.
Gusto was booked after hauling down Schade on the edge of the area, with Mikkel Damsgaard curling the free-kick narrowly over.
Damsgaard was then denied by Robert Sanchez as he burst through, before the Chelsea keeper made a flying save to keep out Nathan Collins’ header.
Chelsea’s solitary effort on target in a one-sided first half was a Noni Madueke drive straight into the arms of Bees goalkeeper Mark Flekken.
Maresca did make a change at the break but it was Nicolas Jackson, rather than Palmer, who came on in place of Christopher Nkunku.
Jackson offered more in his first three minutes on the pitch than Nkunku had in the previous 45, but after latching on to Enzo Fernandez’s ball over the top his shot flew wide.
Palmer was summoned in the 59th minute, along with Pedro Neto, and the pair immediately linked up with Flekken forced to tip away the Portuguese winger’s drive.
⛔ Two big stops from Mark Flekken pic.twitter.com/MuzvVVhugi
— Brentford FC (@BrentfordFC) April 6, 2025
Flekken pulled off an even better save moments later, clawing a James header out from under his crossbar from a Neto corner.
Brentford got a head of steam up inside the final 10 minutes, with Mbeumo playing a one-two with Wissa before firing too close to Sanchez.
From the corner, Bees defender Sepp van den Berg somehow planted a header downwards into the ground and up over the crossbar, and Wissa glanced another header just wide with Sanchez scrambling.
In stoppage time the stage was set for Palmer, but he lifted a shot from the edge of the area over with the last kick of the match.
Newcastle boss Eddie Howe feels his side “look united” after they boosted their hopes of securing a Champions League place with a comfortable 3-0 victory at relegation-haunted Leicester.The Foxes were low on confidence thanks to seven straight defeats heading into the contest and Newcastle jumped all over their hosts with two goals in 11 minutes courtesy of Jacob Murphy, his second com...
Newcastle blew Leicester away with three first-half goals to inflict a miserable 3-0 defeat on the Foxes who moved a step closer to suffering relegation from the Premier League.The Magpies flexed their muscles in front of Sky Bet Championship-bound Leicester in a ruthless start to boost their hopes of returning to the Champions League by moving level on points with fourth-placed Chelsea.Jacob Murp...
Liverpool are reportedly ready to make a slightly risky transfer decision this summer and sell a key first-team player if they receive offers in the region of €55m.The player in question is Portuguese forward Diogo Jota, with Empire of the Kop reporting that his Anfield future could be in some doubt.The report names Newcastle United, Aston Villa and Wolves as being among the suitors for Jota...
Chelsea are weighing up a summer move for Liverpool goalkeeper Caoimhin Kelleher.Blues management remain unconvinced by their keeper options, with Robert Sanchez and Filip Jorgensen both struggling for consistency this season.That's according to Chelsea insider Si Phillips, who also told Tribalfootball.com that Mike Penders (Genk) and Djordje Petrovic (Strasbourg) also have doubts swirling around ...
Paul Scholes has named two key stars he expects Manchester United to offload in the summer in a bid to raise funds for new signings.Man Utd expect a busy summer at Old TraffordAmorim determined to bolster squadClub must sell first to operate within FFP guidelinesWHAT HAPPENED?The Portuguese tactician is tasked with cleaning up the remnants of a fractured squad, as United’s current campaign e...
Let's start our Daily Laugh today. Liverpool lost last night, so?.... EPL Week 31 Thoughts Simple question: Can Arsenal finally win the UCL this year? What's WRONG with Liverpool? Me Tomorrow MSN looks more happy together than BBC. Why is that? Please stay tuned on Daily Laugh. There will be more fun tomorrow!(Credit: Justtoonit, AZRorganization, originaltrollfootball, thefootballarena)...
Man Utd have reportedly identified their top transfer target in the summer transfer window.Ruben Amorim is set to be backed by Man UtdManchester United have identified Ipswich Town striker Liam Delap as their priority transfer target this summer as Ruben Amorim prepares to address his misfiring attack, according to reports. The Red Devils will pursue a new goalscorer ahead of Amorim's first full s...
EXCLUSIVE: Kevin De Bruyne is a wanted man as David Beckham's Inter Miami lead the race to sign the Belgium midfielder after he announced his forthcoming exit from Manchester CityDavid Beckham wants to sign Kevin De BruyneDavid Beckham's Inter Miami will step up their bid to lure Manchester City superstar Kevin De Bruyne to the MLS.De Bruyne became a free agent at the start of 2025, and has announ...
Manchester United are looking to challenge Arsenal to the signing of Matheus Cunha and are set to enter talks with the Wolves forward's agent.United join Arsenal in Cunha raceHave had contact with his agentForward is ready to leave WolvesWHAT HAPPENED?Arsenal are said to be eager to lure the Brazilian to north London as they look to strengthen their attack in an attempt to challenge for the Premie...
Gittens set to leave BVB amid interest from EPL clubs & BayernPer Sky Sports, English winger Jamie Gittens is all set to leave Borussia Dortmund at the end of the 2024-25 campaign amid strong interest from Bundesliga giants Bayern Munich and clubs in the Premier League.Bayern make crunch decision on Sane's futureLeroy Sane, who is in the final few months of his contract at Allianz Arena, has a...
- 1 Aaron Collins scores against former club as Bolton beat Bristol Rovers
- 2 Alan Sheehan happy to grind out win over Derby
- 3 Leaders Liverpool’s 26-match unbeaten Premier League run ended in Fulham defeat
- 4 Five draws in a row for Gillingham as points shared with Salford
- 5 Beckham wants De Bruyne to play with Messi
- 6 Ronaldo's view on whether Messi has settled the GOAT debate for good
- 7 Notts County boss Stuart Maynard delighted with ‘vital’ victory against MK Dons
- 8 Marcus Rashford scores first Premier League goal for Villa in win at Brighton
- 9 Pep Guardiola: Man Utd supporters should be ashamed after Phil Foden chants
- 10 Transfer news & rumours LIVE