Antonio Conte can thank his lucky stars for this one. Part of the luck of the FA Cup is ending up with a good draw, and Chelsea has been given a gift here in the fourth round proper of the tournament. There will be no excuses whatsoever against Brentford in what should be a cakewalk of a match for the best side in England this year.
At 10 a.m. ET, tune into FOX Sports 1 for live television coverage of this FA Cup match on Saturday, January 28, 2016, at Stamford Bridge.
Soccer Odds at BookMaker.eu
Chelsea -500
Brentford +1400
Draw +500
Over/Under 3
Odds Analysis
Many will remember Chelsea getting knocked off of the FA Cup by Bradford City two seasons ago and immediately think that the little good one has a shot in this matchup. Brentford is definitely going to be a challenged Championship side on the road in Stamford Bridge, and that's why it's 14 to 1 to win this match outright. The best bet would probably be trying to pull a Plymouth and get a replay back at home at Griffin Park, but even that wouldn't be a friendly proposition either.
The Blues are set at -500 on the moneyline and are expected to win this match without incident at -2 on the Asian Handicap. With the total set at a flat 3, the chances being given for Brentford to score are virtually nil.
How They Got Here
Both of these teams have only had to play one match at this point to get into the fourth round proper of the FA Cup. Brentford was given a fortunate draw at home against non-league side Eastleigh, a fixture that ended in an easy 5-1 victory. Chelsea, on the other hand, was also rather lucky getting League One side, Peterborough United at home. Obviously this is a second straight virtually ideal draw for the Blues, and they can only hope to continue seeing non-Premier League sides in the future of this tournament.
Recent Form
Chelsea probably struggled more than it should have against Hull City on Sunday, but it got the job done and finished off the win to move eight points clear in the Premier League. The Blues are now on a three-game winning streak after having their 11-match winning streak snapped by Tottenham on January 4.
Brentford has stayed out of the relegation scrap for the time being in Championship and has gotten to 15th on the table. That said, the team has lost two straight matches by 2-1 margins to Wigan and Newcastle, and that's not a good sign.
Free Soccer Betting Pick
The big problem we have with Brentford is that its defense has been shoddy at best of late. The team has allowed at least one goal in four straight matches, and considering the fact that none of these duels have been against the elite teams in Championship, that's not a good sign going against Chelsea.
Are the Blues perfectionists at this point? Not nearly, and their match against Hull City showed just that on Sunday in spite of the fact that they got their three points. That said, they should at least see off Brentford at home, though we'd rather have the two goals on our side than be laying them, as we just don't see Chelsea being good enough to strike three times in a match that will probably at least somewhat be taken for granted considering all of the big time EPL matches that are waiting on the horizon.
FA Cup Odds: Chelsea 2, Brentford 0
BookMaker offers play-by-play betting odds for live sporting events every day! The user-friendly wagering interface on your smartphone provides an easy way to place bets on the go. Mobile betting lines are updated by the minute, so click here to start gambling on thrilling live action at BookMaker Sportsbook!
