- Chelsea were humiliated in their trip to the south coast, losing 3-0 to Brighton
- The Seagulls moved up to eighth in the table and six points off the top four spots
- LISTEN NOW: It’s All Kicking Off! Will Liverpool recover from Everton blow in season-defining week?
The frostiness with which Enzo Maresca discussed his Brighton counterpart in the build-up made you wonder if he has a dartboard in his office with a picture of Fabian Hurzeler’s face on it.
Unfortunately for Chelsea, it was their Champions League charge which was poked full of holes here. They returned to the Amex Stadium for the second time in six days and lost again, looking equally as effective in this Premier League clash as they did in the FA Cup.
What they lacked in ingenuity, Brighton offered in abundance while opening the scoring, a move which made their fans’ numb toes on this frozen Friday night worthwhile.
As first touches go, Kaoru Mitoma’s was up there with the very best, one which would not look alien in a showreel for Dennis Bergkamp, Luis Suarez or Dimitar Berbatov.
It was a ball launched long by Brighton goalkeeper Bart Verbruggen which had no business being controlled so exquisitely as it landed over Mitoma’s shoulder. He magically made it his own, escaped Trevoh Chalobah, and curled into the corner from 20 yards.
A double from Yankuba Minteh followed and, while Chelsea can claim they have an injury list which has left them with zero strikers available, supporters will tell you standards are not being met.
Brighton eased past Chelsea to win 3-0 at home after Kaoru Mitoma’s magical opening goal
Yankuba Minteh helped sunk the Blues with his brace, scoring either side of half-time
Enzo Maresca’s struggling side have now lost three of their last four games in all competitions
This week marked three years since Chelsea’s last trophy – in the Club World Cup when they beat Palmeiras 2-1 in February 2022. Summing up the scale of change, the only surviving members from that match-day squad are Marcus Bettinelli and Chalobah.
As Maresca said in the build-up, this is not the same Chelsea that used to win for fun, throwing their weight around as the heavies of English football. Supporters know that, too, as they sang the name of Roman Abramovich, loudly and proudly once the second half started.
The good news, if there was any, was that only Liverpool had come from behind to avoid losing in more Premier League matches this season than Chelsea. They won after trailing at the break to Tottenham and West Ham, but this was going to be a big task, given what we had seen.
This was only Nkunku’s sixth Premier League start for Chelsea since signing for £52m in June 2023. He had been a ghost offering little to the game, and in their desperation, Chelsea chucked a few crosses in, seemingly forgetting they did not have a striker.
Palmer started to show his frustration, clearly fed up with what he was witnessing in the final third.
After 63 minutes, Brighton made it three when Colwill tried and failed to pass from the back. Welbeck fed Minteh, who cut inside and scored.
Amid the pause in play, Fernandez decided to start a scrap. He has done this before while Chelsea are losing, as if to show to the supporters he cares. They could do with that passion while points are there for the taking.
Mitoma could have added a chef’s kiss when he led a counter, but he blasted directly at Jorgensen. Brighton made do with their three, and Chelsea will do well to finish this weekend inside of the Premier League’s top four.