Should this match go ahead as planned – something which is far from guaranteed during this time of short-notice postponements – then it will no doubt only add to Chelsea’s fury that they are continuing to be forced to play despite having a severely depleted squad.
The Premier League and EFL decided on Monday to keep the festive fixture schedule as planned, with games due to be played unless a club proves that they do not have enough players to fulfil the fixture.
Chelsea felt as though they met that threshold at the weekend when they requested for their match against Wolves to be postponed, only for the Premier League to reject that request and insist that the Blues play the game.
Thomas Tuchel was subsequently only able to name four outfield players and two goalkeepers on his bench at Molineux as he watched his Chelsea side lose more ground in the title race courtesy of a goalless stalemate.
Chelsea now sit six points adrift of leaders Manchester City following a blip which has seen them win just one of their last five games across all competitions, and only three of their last eight top-flight outings.
As one of only two teams to have fulfilled all 18 Premier League games as well as playing in Europe and reaching the EFL Cup quarter-finals amid the coronavirus crisis,
Chelsea may view Wednesday’s game as an opportunity to rest some first-team players first and foremost, rather than a chance to reach the semi-finals of a major trophy.
Doing both would be the ideal scenario, and Tuchel will particularly not want any of his key men going all the way to penalties, as has happened in five of Chelsea’s last six League Cup games against Premier League opposition.
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That includes both matches so far this year, with the European champions overcoming Aston Villa and Southampton via shootouts to set up this meeting with Brentford.
Tuchel’s side go into the game winless in their last three matches on the road, but in general their away form has been impressive this season, including a 1-0 win at the Brentford Community Stadium in the Premier League.
That result came in the middle of a five-game winless home streak for the Bees, but they have now won their last two in front of their own fans – most recently a 2-1 triumph over Watford on December 12.
