CHELSEA missed the opportunity to climb to the Premier League summit after Fabio Carvalho’s 93rd-minute equaliser secured Brentford a dramatic 2-2 draw in Saturday’s west London derby.
The world champions paid for manager Enzo Maresca’s experimental team selection as Kevin Schade fired Brentford into a first-half lead.
Substitute Cole Palmer led Chelsea’s revival upon his injury return by equalising before Moises Caicedo’s thunderous strike appeared to have secured all three points for the visitors.
Brentford’s persistent threat from long throw-ins finally paid dividends in stoppage time when Carvalho tapped home unmarked from close range.
Chelsea remain unbeaten this season but sit fifth in the table, one point behind leaders Arsenal, Tottenham, Bournemouth and Liverpool.
Maresca may regret his team selection with Wednesday’s Champions League trip to Bayern Munich potentially influencing his decisions.
Jorrel Hato struggled on his full Premier League debut while Wesley Fofana only managed 45 minutes in his first start of the campaign.
Facundo Buonanotte and Jamie Gittens failed to impress in attacking areas as Chelsea wasted the entire first half.
Maresca expressed disappointment after the match, stating his team deserved victory despite their poor first-half performance.
Brentford faced the match without Yoane Wissa and Bryan Mbeumo, who contributed 39 Premier League goals between them last season before departing this week.
Schade embraced the responsibility of filling the void left by the departed duo by scoring his first goal of the season after 35 minutes.
Jordan Henderson’s through ball found Schade’s run before the German cut inside Tosin Adarabioyo and finished into the bottom corner.
Maresca made three halftime substitutions, introducing Marc Cucurella, Reece James and Tyrique George for Hato, Fofana and Buonanotte.
George forced Caoimhín Kelleher into an excellent save before Palmer’s introduction on 56 minutes truly transformed the match.
The England international showed no signs of rustiness despite missing Chelsea’s previous two games through injury.
Palmer equalised just five minutes after entering the pitch when he pounced on Joao Pedro’s headed knockdown from Enzo Fernandez’s cross.
Schade nearly immediately restored Brentford’s lead but Robert Sanchez produced a smart save to his right.
Palmer should have doubled his tally when he fired too close to Kelleher after an electric burst from Pedro Neto.
Caicedo put Chelsea ahead through an unlikely source when he smashed Alejandro Garnacho’s cleared cross into the top corner from the edge of the box.
Garnacho undid his good work by switching off in stoppage time, allowing Carvalho to convert Kristoffer Ajer’s flick-on.
Brentford manager Keith Andrews, promoted from set-piece coach after Thomas Frank’s departure to Tottenham, criticised what he called “snobbery” around utilising long throws.
Andrews noted that top Champions League clubs frequently use long throws and questioned why it becomes criticised when smaller teams employ similar tactics.
The draw moves Brentford up to 12th position with four points from their opening four matches. – AFP