Analysis: Brentford the Premier League's leading throw-in specialists | OneFootball

Those in the know say long throws are back in vogue - and Brentford left it fashionably late to showcase their expertise in an entertaining 2-2 draw with Chelsea at Gtech Community Stadium on Saturday.

Trailing 2-1 to their west London rivals deep into stoppage time, the Bees kept the faith and a probing long throw-in from Kevin Schade caused chaos in the Blues' area: substitute Fábio Carvalho ghosting on to a Kristoffer Ajer flick to earn the hosts a point.

Prior to the game, Brentford head coach Keith Andrews touched upon the "carnage" his side’s throws can cause, and Carvalho's equaliser followed a trend that traces back to the Irishman's former stint as set-piece coach.

Since the start of last season, the stats are clear: Brentford are the Premier League's leading throw-in specialists.

In fact, of the 24 top-flight goals scored from throw-ins since the start of last season, Brentford have scored seven of them (29 per cent); the Bees' prowess underlined by no other Premier League team managing more than two during this time.

Brentford’s output isn’t down to luck either, as they have created a whopping 48 chances from throw-ins since the start of 2024/25 and, according to their xG data, should have scored 7.2 expected goals from them.

As Chelsea manager Enzo Maresca lamented afterwards, Brentford have multiple threats in this regard with Michael Kayode, Schade, Mathias Jensen and Ethan Pinnock all capable of hurling in projectiles from the sideline.

Schade's timely late assist from the touchline followed the German's well-taken opening goal, courtesy of a sensational Jordan Henderson pass, which had given Brentford a 1-0 lead at the interval. A 50th career goal for Chelsea sub Cole Palmer and a bullet of a strike from Moisés Caicedo turned the game on its head, but the Bees stuck to their task and Carvalho's 93rd-minute strike was just reward.

Chelsea are among the leading clubs in the top tier, in terms of possession, and Maresca's side dominated 67 per cent of the ball and fired in 16 shots to their hosts' seven.

However, Brentford's defensive resilience during Andrews' tenure has been allied with efficiency in the final third and it was telling that the Bees (1.5 xG) created more expected goals than the visitors (1.28xG). The Bees pride themselves on creating high-quality chances and currently no team in the Premier League has a higher xG-per-shot value than the Bees (0.16).

In addition to their set-piece strengths, Andrews' side are a threat in transition and Schade's goal was a perfect example, the lively forward latching onto an inch-perfect pass from Henderson before driving into the area and dispatching a low effort past Robert Sanchez in the Chelsea goal.

No Ajax player completed more key passes than Henderson in the Eredivisie last season and his assist for Schade's goal was one of five accurate long balls pinged by the England international against Chelsea.

The 35-year-old's quality on the ball was coupled with tenacity, no Bees player won more tackles, and Henderson's influence in the middle of the park will not have escaped the attention of onlooking England manager Tuchel.

They had to settle for a point, but Brentford's dead-ball expertise and resilience bode well at this early stage of the season - and head coach Andrews will hope that his side can harness the many positives on show against Chelsea and carry them into the Carabao Cup against Villa on Tuesday.