Brentford and Chelsea draw 0-0
It's hard to get excited about a nil-nil draw. However, the game had plenty of chances at both ends and was as entertaining as a goalless draw could be.
Let's check the pre-game Correlation FC prediction:
Prediction
If Chelsea wears blue, Brentford will pick up at least a point.
Correct. Chelsea wore blue and the Bees did indeed pick up a point.
Trends that continued
Brentford gave up a lot of shots, again
This season, Brentford has given up a lot of shots. The most in the league in fact. While Brentford has given up a lot of shots, they are at or near the top of the league for a number of stats that suggest that the high number of shots against isn't inherently a problem.
Brentford goalkeeping and defensive stats (source FBref.com)
| Category | Amount | Brentford's League Rank |
|---|---|---|
| Shots against | 547 | 1st |
| Shots blocked | 163 | 1st |
| Opponent goals per shot (lower is better) | 0.08 | 1st |
| Saves | 130 | 2nd |
| Opponent goals per shot on target | 0.25 | 2nd |
| Opponent average shot distance | 17.4 yards | 3rd |
| Opponent shot on target % | 31.6% | 4th |
Chelsea took 21 shots, with only 5 of them finding their way through to Mark Flekken. As usual the Bees did a good job of blocking shots and forcing Chelsea into low quality shots that missed the target. Let's see how they look on a shot map.
Shot map of Chelsea's shots vs Brentford (source Correlation FC)
Collins playing every minute
Nathan Collins has played every Premier League minute for the Bees this year. Twice during the game it looked like he had injured his ankle, and he briefly left the pitch after being treated for an injury. Even though Ethan Pinnock warmed up, Collins stayed in the game until the end. If wonder if he would have come off if he didn't have his PL minutes streak going?
What was different
6 possible starters on the bench
Brentford's injury situation seems to be getting better. Thomas Frank was able to name his strongest bench in recent memory with Mathias Jensen, Vitaly Janelt, Michael Kayode, Rico Henry, Ethan Pinnock and Ben Mee on the bench, with the first three coming into the game as subs. Only 5 players missed the game due to injury, one of their lower totals of 2025.
Looking better in green
This was the fourth time that the Bees keepers have worn green this season, but the first time they've picked up a point. They lost their three previous occasions in green.
This story was published on 07 April 2025. It was written by Dennis Flood. The image at the top of this story was generated using AI.
