Cole Palmer And Ben Chilwell To Start; Thiago Silva On The Bench: Chelsea’s Predicted XI To Play Brentford

Chelsea put in a pretty poor display against Leeds in the FA Cup but Conor Gallagher spared the home side’s blushes by scoring a late winner.

After the devastating blow of losing the Carabao Cup final last weekend, getting the result was the most important thing on Wednesday evening.

It means they will head to the Gtech Community Stadium for their next fixture in a slightly more confident mood.

Press the next page as we predict Chelsea’s starting lineup for the game against Brentford.

GK – Djordje Petrovic

Robert Sanchez couldn’t really do anything with the two goals that Leeds scored.

However, the Spaniard very rarely looks composed, either when he is asked to play out from the back or when collecting crosses.

Petrovic offers an air of calmness and composure that Sanchez cannot provide.

The 24-year-old is expected to be recalled to the eleven for the trip to Brentford on Saturday.

RB – Malo Gusto

The Frenchman looked tired against Leeds, which was demonstrated when he allowed Jaidon Antony to cross before Chelsea’s opponents equalised.

Gusto was substituted not longer afterward so it is hoped that he will have slightly fresher legs this weekend.

It must be said that we haven’t seen much of the fullback in terms of being a threat in the final third recently.

One of Gusto’s main strengths is his ability to provide overlaps and you would want him to get forward more often versus Brentford.

CB – Axel Disasi

The centre-back was poor for Leeds’ opener, with his pass to Moises Caicedo being pounced upon by the opposition.

Disasi’s poor distribution is a major flaw in his game and it is something that caused him issues in the Carabao Cup final too.

Thiago Silva was not on the bench on Wednesday evening so it’s unlikely that the Brazilian will be available to start at the Gtech Community Stadium. He could be among the substitutes.

With Benoit Badiahsile also injured and Trevoh Chalobah unlikely to start for the second time in 3 days, manager Mauricio Pochettino may have to keep faith with Disasi.

CB – Levi Colwill

The 20-year-old did replace Alfie Gilchrist for the final 15 minutes against Leeds midweek so he should be fresh enough to return to the eleven on Saturday.

Colwill is now getting more game time in his favoured position, having mostly been deployed by Pochettino at left-back up until recently.

That decision has been forced on the manager somewhat due to injuries and it will be interesting to see what happens when Silva is back fit.

Colwill has struck up a good partnership with Disasi which Pochettino may look to persist with.

LB – Ben Chilwell

Pochettino confirmed after the win against Leeds that the vice-captain was benched due to “some problems”.

He didn’t go into much detail about Chilwell’s fitness but, by the looks of things, it wasn’t a particularly serious issue.

Whatever it was, it didn’t stop the left-back coming on for the last half hour on Wednesday evening.

You would fully expect Chilwell to return to the starting lineup when Chelsea take on Brentford.

CM – Moises Caicedo

Some will blame the Ecuadorian for losing the ball for Leeds’ opener, but most of the fault for that lies with Disasi.

Other than that, Caicedo had a good game, providing the assist for Nicolas Jackson’s goal and passing the ball with the intent of getting his team up the pitch.

The midfielder also gets through a lot of work, which sometimes goes unnoticed. He broke up a number of Leeds’ attacks.

Caicedo’s performance on Wednesday was more like what fans were expecting when he arrived at Stamford Bridge last summer.

CM – Enzo Fernandez

The Argentinian international was much better against Leeds than he was at Wembley on Sunday.

Fernandez was given the armband by Pochettino and that proved to be a good decision.

He broke up play as well as delivering a number of good passes forward, including for Gallagher’s winner.

Supporters will be looking for more of the same versus Brentford this weekend.

AM – Conor Gallagher

The midfielder was rested for the FA Cup but he played a key role after coming on as a substitute on Wednesday.

Gallagher played as the No.10 after replacing Noni Madueke on the hour mark, and there was an instant improvement in Chelsea’s attacking play.

The England international got himself involved in the game, linking up well with Fernandez and delivering some neat passes. His great turn and shot then provided the winner.

You can see why Pochettino is such a fan and Gallagher will come straight back into the starting lineup for the Brentford match.

RW – Cole Palmer

Pochettino has confirmed that the winger was under the weather against Leeds midweek.

However, Palmer still came on for the final 15 minutes so you would expect him to be ready to start at the Gtech Community Stadium this weekend.

The Blues are definitely better going forward when he is in the team so, if he is 100% fit for the Brentford clash, he will be recalled.

Thomas Frank’s side haven’t exactly been watertight defensively recently so you would back Palmer to find the gaps in their backline.

CF – Nicolas Jackson

The Senegalese international took his goal well versus Leeds and he looked a threat with his runs on the flanks.

Jackson always puts in maximum effort and, while some may question his final product, he is currently the club’s best option up front.

At 22 years of age, there is still time for the striker to unlock more of his talent.

The question is though, will he be able to develop his game quick enough so that both Chelsea’s fans and management don’t lose patience with him?

LW – Raheem Sterling

The 29-year-old got the assist for Mykhailo Mudryk’s goal versus Leeds, and he was consistently making dangerous runs on the ball.

Yet, fans are still waiting to see the player who ripped things up during his time with Manchester City.

As one of the most experienced players in Chelsea’s squad, you would expect him to be a game-changer on a regular basis, but he doesn’t produce the goods often enough.

It will be a toss-up between him and Mudryk for who starts against Brentford on Saturday afternoon.