Enzo Maresca’s calculated gamble did not come off. Chelsea’s head coach turned into the Tinkerman, benching Cole Palmer, Pedro Neto and ­Nicolas Jackson in an attempt to keep his best forwards fresh for the run-in, but his side’s hopes of qualifying for the Champions League were dented by their failure to summon any ­attacking inspiration before it was too late.

In fairness a goalless draw against highly motivated opponents may not prove to be the worst result in the final reckoning. Brentford, who were punchy for long spells and resilient when they had to defend, had enough chances to end an eight-match winless run at home. There were some good saves from Robert Sánchez and Maresca probably would have faced a tougher inquest had Sepp van den Berg not missed a gimme of a header during the dying stages.

Chelsea could not point to many clearcut openings in response. Maresca, who argued that it was unfair that his side did not have more rest after beating Tottenham on Thursday, was pushing it when he said they deserved more. Brentford’s manager, Thomas Frank, said: “I guess we are all slightly biased as coaches. We all look on our side of the elephant. It is hard to see the other side of the elephant unless you are on top of it.”

There was a pointed pause from Frank when he was asked if he sympathised with Chelsea’s complaints given that they were able to make use of their deep squad. It was hard for Maresca to dodge the scrutiny over his lineup, especially as Chelsea do not have a particularly daunting ­midweek assignment. They visit Legia Warsaw for the first leg of their Uefa Conference League ­quarter-final on Thursday.

The task is to regain a place among Europe’s elite. Yet Chelsea have not won on the road since December and their remaining fixtures are awkward. One slip at home could be decisive. The sense of a missed opportunity lingered. “We played a good game,” Maresca said. “The pitch was dry. They tried to kill the tempo. But I think we did enough.”

The quick turnaround after ­beating Spurs forced Maresca to give more consideration to load management than he would have liked. The changes, though, did not have a positive impact on Chelsea’s energy ­levels. Their passing was too ­deliberate in a tepid opening period and they did not have a shot on target until Noni Madueke fired straight at Mark Flekken in the 34th minute.

Brentford were stronger and more adventurous. They were direct when they won possession and their strategy of pinging long balls down Chelsea’s right was effective. Kevin Schade kept spinning beyond Malo Gusto, who was booked for fouling the winger, and chances followed. Yoane Wissa and Bryan Mbeumo shot wide, Mikkel Damsgaard sent a free‑kick over, Sánchez pushed away a header from Keane Lewis-Potter.

Chelsea were disjointed. Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall worked hard on his second league start since joining from Leicester but Jadon Sancho was poor on the left and Enzo Fernández was petulant in midfield. Christopher Nkunku, meanwhile, looked unenthused after coming off for Jackson. Chelsea might have as well have been playing with 10 men before the forward’s half-time substitution.

They should have been behind by then. Sánchez was nervy when he had to use his feet. The goalkeeper’s distribution remains a weakness and he almost cost Chelsea when his stray pass went to Christian Nørgaard. Played in by Wissa, Damsgaard’s heavy touch let Sánchez off the hook.

The final part was the problem for Brentford and they were under more pressure after Jackson replaced Nkunku. Van den Berg and Nathan Collins had more to think about once Chelsea had a mobile striker ­leading the line.

It was better from Chelsea, who built on Moisés Caicedo’s growing dominance in midfield. Jackson sent an angled shot wide and Van den Berg almost scored an own-goal. Sensing a shift in the momentum, Maresca went even stronger for the final 30 minutes. Palmer replaced Dewsbury-Hall and Madueke made way for Neto, who soon tested Flekken from 20 yards.

Brentford had to dig deep, Flekken made another fine save when Reece James headed goalwards. Yet they relished the fight and their resilience subdued Chelsea. Frank was satisfied with his side’s efforts. Brentford ­finished strongly and created chances. Sánchez denied Mbeumo before Wissa and Van den Berg spurned free headers.

Chelsea fizzled out. Palmer flashed a shot just over with the final kick of the game but a draw was fair. The question is whether Maresca will come to regret his tinkering.