The Blues were made to work hard at Stamford Bridge this afternoon by a Brentford side that started the day fifth in the Premier League table. But we broke the deadlock midway through the first half when Joao Pedro reacted quickly to a fortunate rebound and lashed home our opener.

Both sides had further opportunities to add to the scoring, but it wasn't until the 76th minute that a second goal arrived. After Liam Delap won a penalty following a foul by Caoimhin Kelleher, Palmer stepped up to convert and seal the three points.

That meant a winning start for Rosenior in the Premier League as Chelsea head coach, although he is having to carefully manage his squad due to a virus in the camp.

'Late yesterday, Estevao had a temperature and a fever,' Rosenior explained. 'So he was ill; it's running through the squad. There were a couple of players playing today who were complaining about their chests, but they put in a magnificent effort.

'I felt that's why we weren't good with the ball. I won't give you names – it's not right for me to do that – but it's why I'm so happy with the attitude of the group to get through this game.'

While Estevao was sidelined, the Blues' head coach was able to call upon James and Palmer. The former played 85 minutes while the latter, in addition to scoring from the spot, completed the game.

Rosenior highlighted the efforts made by both players against the Bees, especially as neither had trained ahead of the game.

'I couldn't play them against Arsenal and I'm so proud of them because they put themselves up [to play today] and they ran themselves into the ground,' Rosenior said.

'They've had no training time with the knocks they picked up, but they showed a fantastic attitude. And the more games and the more training sessions they get, the better they'll perform.'

On Palmer, he added: 'Watch the last 15 minutes of the game and you see the energy he puts into his pressing and his running in for the team; I thought he was outstanding. It's impossible for any player, any team, to be magnificent with the ball in every game, but you can still find a way to win.'

Rosenior was forced into a second-half change during our victory, with defender Tosin Adarabioyo forced off with an injury.

'I think it's precautionary at the moment; he said he felt something in his hamstring,' the Blues head coach replied when asked about the defender's fitness.

'I don't know if it's serious, I don't know if it's not. He said it felt better afterwards, but at the moment, I've got a really, really good bench that I trust and Wes (Fofana) is an outstanding player and I brought him on to help the team.'