Chelsea’s Alonso honeymoon ends as Brentford inflict 3-0 defeat

Chelsea coach Xabi Alonso has three weeks during the international break to address his side’s defensive problems after Friday’s 3-0 defeat by Brentford left them with 12 goals conceded in their opening five Premier League matches.

Chelsea made an encouraging start under Alonso, who moved to Stamford Bridge in July, with victories against Fulham and Brighton & Hove Albion prompting suggestions they could challenge for the title.

However, those results also exposed weaknesses, with Chelsea conceding five times across the two games. A 2-1 loss at Arsenal, a 2-2 home draw with Hull City last weekend and the defeat at Brentford have since taken the shine off Alonso’s early spell in charge.

The Spaniard said his players had struggled to maintain their concentration for the full match and needed greater consistency and determination.

“It’s about 95 minutes. We have not been able to keep that level throughout these few games in the start of the season, and it’s something that we have to do better,” Alonso told reporters.

“We know that it’s a process, that it’s still (only) five games, and in a competitive Premier League, that each game is really hard.”

Chelsea’s next fixture is at home to Bournemouth on October 10, giving Alonso time to assess the fitness of several players before the season resumes.

Midfielder Moises Caicedo, who usually protects the defence, has made only one appearance so far, playing 14 minutes. Italy defender Marco Palestra, who joined the London club during the summer, has yet to feature.

Brazil striker Joao Pedro, who had been in good form, was also absent from the squad for Friday’s match.

Those absences did not fully explain Chelsea’s second-half collapse, however, as a team assembled at considerable cost was largely outplayed by Brentford after the sides had gone into half-time level at 0-0.

Jaidon Anthony opened the scoring before Igor Thiago doubled Brentford’s advantage. Substitute Fabio Carvalho completed the victory, underlining the progress made by the Bees since Keith Andrews became coach in 2025.

Brentford remain unbeaten this campaign after another impressive performance, particularly following the interval.

“I felt there was a performance bubbling. I just could see that in the players’ eyes last couple of days,” Andrews told reporters. “The approach has been really focused and I thought in the second half in particular we showed exactly what we are.”