Cucurella red mars win but Jackson keeps Chelsea flying

Keeping up the pretence that this is no title challenge is becoming harder for Chelsea to maintain.

- Jacob Steinberg

Boosted by Arsenal and Liverpool squandering points on Saturday, Enzo Maresca's team broke Brentford's hold over them and delivered in the manner of potential champions by winning a tight game thanks to goals from Marc Cucurella, who was sent off after full-time, and Nicolas Jackson.

No doubt Maresca will stay measured, even after seeing Chelsea end a run of three consecutive home defeats to their neighbours. He will note that Robert Sánchez, so often maligned, had to make a huge save from Christian Nørgaard at 1-0. Fábio Carvalho, the Brentford substitute, then hit the bar during a nervy finale. Bryan Mbeumo halved the deficit in the 90th minute.

Overall, though, this was a night of positives for Chelsea. They quelled awkward opponents with their hunger and ruthlessness. They survived a difficult spell and, when Jackson broke to make it 2-0, the crowd erupted. They know that Chelsea, who are two points below Liverpool, albeit having played a game more, are in the race. The luxury of a deep squad meant fatigue and the absence of seven injured players were unlikely to affect Chelsea after their 18-hour round trip to Kazakhstan to play Astana in the Europa Conference League. Maresca simply brought the A-listers back into the fold and, with his team pinning Brentford back at first, the opening goal seemed a matter of time.