Brentford roundup: unbeaten Bees sit fifth with Chelsea next

Where Brentford stand

According to the Premier League table, Brentford sit fifth after four matches: one win, three draws and no defeats, with seven goals scored, four conceded and a plus-three goal difference for six points. That is level with Liverpool and Everton, and six behind leaders Arsenal, who have a perfect 12 from four games. It is a congested picture below the summit — Ipswich Town also have six points, while Newcastle United have five from three played.

A start built on draws

The unbeaten record leans heavily on shared points. Brentford drew 2-2 away at AFC Bournemouth — a game BBC Sport headlined "Brentford hold Bournemouth as Rose's wait for a win continues", with Bournemouth still winless down in 15th — as well as 1-1 at home to Sunderland AFC and 1-1 away at Leeds United. The club's only win of the campaign so far completes the four-match account, and turning a few of those draws into victories is the gap between a solid start and the pace being set at the top.

The scorers

According to the top scorer data, Kevin Schade and V. Janelt lead the club's charts with two goals each, with Igor Thiago, K. Lewis-Potter, K. Schade and M. Kayode all on one. The goals have been shared rather than carried by a single striker — a handy spread for a side that has made a habit of tight scorelines.

Chelsea come to town

Brentford host Chelsea at the Brentford Community Stadium on Friday 18 September. The visitors arrive fourth on seven points with two straight wins behind them, according to the table's form column, and with 10 goals scored and nine conceded. The latest bookmaker odds, as of 13 September, make Chelsea favourites at 2.25 — a bookmaker-derived implied probability of 42% — with Brentford at 2.87 (33% implied) and the draw at 3.75 (25% implied). FanTribe's points on offer reflect that market: 57 for a Brentford win, 75 for the draw and 45 for a Chelsea win, meaning the draw — Brentford's most frequent outcome this season — carries the biggest reward.

Then Villa Park

Brentford travel to Aston Villa on Saturday 10 October. Villa are 19th with a single point from four matches, and the bookmakers make Brentford favourites for that one at 2.4, a bookmaker-derived implied probability of 39%, against 2.8 for Villa (34% implied) and 3.5 for the draw (27% implied). The FanTribe points on offer there are 48 for a Brentford win, 70 for the draw and 56 for Villa.

The FanTribe picture

FanTribe's club data currently shows zero registered Brentford fans — an oddly blank page for a side sitting fifth in the Premier League. If the Bees' unbeaten start has won you over, the queue to be counted is empty and the visit of Chelsea is the obvious place to start.