Chelsea vs Brentford LIVE commentary: Frank Lampard still awaiting first win in interim charge as Blues gear up for London derby

Frank Lampard will be aiming to win his first game back in charge of Chelsea this week after making a disappointing return to Stamford Bridge.

The Blues are winless in five in the Premier League and have only scored one goal in their last four, conceding in every game since Lampard’s comeback. 

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They sit in the bottom half of the top-flight table, one place below Wednesday’s opponents Brentford ahead of the London derby. 

Thomas Frank’s side are on a poor run of form themselves and are without a win in six games, last coming out on top in March against Southampton. 

Three points for either side would possibly turn their fortunes around and kickstart a positive finish to the campaign. 

Chelsea vs Brentford: talkSPORT coverage 

This Premier League clash will take place on Wednesday, April 26. 

Kick-off at Stamford Bridge is scheduled for 7:45pm. 

talkSPORT will have live coverage of the game, exclusively on the talkSPORT APP. 

Commentary will come from Mike McCarthy via talkSPORT International. 

To tune in to talkSPORT or talkSPORT 2 through the website, click HERE for the live stream.

You can also listen via the talkSPORT app, on DAB digital radio, through your smart speaker and on 1089 or 1053 AM.

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Chelsea vs Brentford: Team news 

Kalidou Koulibaly is expected to remain out after picking up an injury in the Champions League earlier this month. 

He joins long-term absentee Armando Broja on the sidelines while Lampard has the remainder of his squad to choose from. 

Reece James and Ruben Loftus-Cheek have slight knocks but will be fit to play at Stamford Bridge this week. 

As for Brentford, defenders Pontus Jansson and Kristoffer Ajer are likely to miss out through injury alongside Keane Lewis-Potter. 

Captain Christian Norgaard and striker Kevin Schade were both substituted with knocks in the draw with Aston Villa and may be unable to feature on Wednesday. 

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Chelsea vs Brentford: What has been said? 

Lampard is still winless as Chelsea boss and talkSPORT’s Andy Goldstein has told him to walk away from the club with his reputation on the line. 

Speaking on talkSPORT Drive, Goldstein said: “There is a chance that Lampard could walk away from this little stint without one win under his belt.

“If he did that, I think that would be the last time any club ever goes to him, ‘Can you manage ours?’ I think Lampard has got to walk away, it’s a basket case of a club.

“I don’t really understand why they brought him in in the first place, I don’t understand what they were trying to get out of it. It was an uphill task beating Real Madrid at the best of times.

“When you’ve got a tactical genius in the dugout, you’ve got a chance in someone like Thomas Tuchel, they for some reason sacked him, brought in [Graham] Potter, sacked him.

“Then they brought back a manager they already sacked, I don’t get any of it. I think Lampard should think of himself, not the club, and leave.”

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Chelsea vs Brentford: Match facts

• Ivan Toney has scored 19 goals for Brentford in the Premier League this season. Should he find the net in this game, he would become just the second player to score 20+ in a top-flight campaign for the Bees, after Dave McCulloch, who did so three times (26 in 1935-36, 31 in 1936-37, and 26 in 1937-38).
• Since his Premier League debut on February 3rd, Chelsea’s Enzo Fernández has completed more passes than any other midfielder in the Premier League (762). Indeed, he has been involved in more open play sequences ending in shots (55) and goals (4) than any other player for the Blues since his league debut. 
• Brentford’s Ivan Toney has been involved in five goals in his last five Premier League London derby matches (4 goals, 1 assist), more than he had in his first 12 such appearances (2 goals, 2 assists).
• Frank Lampard has lost both of his Premier League matches in charge of Chelsea since his return. Including his time with Everton, he’s lost eight of his last nine league games, including each of the last five. Indeed, since he joined the Toffees in February 2022, no manager has lost more Premier League games than Lampard (23).
• Chelsea have scored just 30 goals in the Premier League this season, their lowest after 31 games of a league campaign since 1923-24 (17). Despite the low goal total, these 30 goals have been netted by 14 different players.
• Brentford have failed to win each of the last four Premier League games that they’ve opened the scoring in (D3 L1), including last time out in a 1-1 draw with Aston Villa. Prior to this, the Bees had won 19 of their first 23 Premier League games in which they’d scored first, and never lost (D4).
• Chelsea are winless in their last seven matches in all competitions (D2 L5), losing the last four in a row. They last had a longer winless run between October and December 1993 (11 games), which included a run of six straight defeats – the last time they lost 5+ consecutively.
• Chelsea have lost three of their last six Premier League London derby matches (W1 D2), as many as in their previous 14. They last lost four such matches in a single campaign back in 2001-02.
• Brentford have lost six of their eight away games against Chelsea in all competitions (W2), though they did come from behind to win this exact fixture 4-1 last season.
• After winning seven of eight meetings with Brentford in all competitions between 1946 and 2021 (D1), Chelsea are winless in their last two against the Bees (D1 L1).