Chelsea 2-1 Brentford: Gritty win closes gap on Liverpool

Chelsea claimed a hard-fought 2-1 victory over Brentford to record their fifth straight Premier League win and close in on Liverpool at the summit.

Nicolas Jackson’s strike proved decisive in Sunday’s west London derby at Stamford Bridge, where Marc Cucurella was sent off after full-time.

It was Cucurella who put Chelsea in front in the 43rd minute, heading home at the end of a first half that the Blues had mostly dominated.

After squandering a golden chance to double Chelsea’s advantage on the hour, Jackson atoned with a neat finish 10 minutes from time.

Bryan Mbeumo dragged Brentford – who had earlier hit the crossbar – back into it in the final minute of normal time, but it was too little too late for the Bees.

Tempers boiled over after the whistle had blown, with Cucurella seeing red for his part in a heated argument, as Chelsea moved to within two points of leaders Liverpool.

Data Debrief: The best of the rest

Question marks were raised in the summer when Enzo Maresca was chosen to replace Mauricio Pochettino as Chelsea's new head coach but the doubts have long since dissipated, and they are standing out as Liverpool's main title rivals, especially after Arsenal dropped points and Manchester City suffered yet another defeat.

Chelsea are now 15 points better off than they were this time last season, while they have also won more games (15) and scored more goals (51) than any other side since the start of May.

The Blues finished with 2.1 expected goals from their 26 shots, with eight of those hitting the target. Defensively, there is work to do, and that is where the very best teams may punish them. Brentford missed some big chances – including Fabio Carvalho hitting the crossbar just before Jackson netted Chelsea's second – and finished with 1.6 xG.

Jackson turned in another impressive display leading the line for Chelsea, though he did squander a great chance at 1-0. He made amends with a composed finish that ultimately proved to be the winner, though. He has now scored nine goals and provided three assists in his last 14 appearances.