FOOTBALLPremier League
Chelsea 4-3 Brighton & Hove Albion: Match Report
Chelsea race into a three-goal lead, weather a Brighton fightback and hold on to win a seven-goal thriller 4-3 at Stamford Bridge as Cole Palmer settles it late on.
In this report
Chelsea beat Brighton & Hove Albion 4-3 at Stamford Bridge in front of 39,497, a result that moved the Blues up to second behind Manchester City on 6 points from two matches.
Chelsea came in off a 3-2 win at Fulham and a 2-0 Carabao Cup second round win over Luton Town. Brighton arrived on the back of a goalless draw away in Tromso in the UEFA Conference League play-off first leg, a 4-0 win over Aston Villa and a 4-0 win over Tromso in the return. Xabi Alonso gave a home debut to Emi Martinez, signed from Aston Villa in the week, with Mike Penders on the bench.
The hosts made a flying start. In the fourth minute Brighton failed to clear a corner, Bart Verbruggen and Mats Wieffer got in each other's way, and Romeo Lavia prodded home from close range. On 14 minutes Morgan Rogers delivered from the left and Pedro Neto swept in a second. Chelsea then made it 3-0 in the 32nd minute on a rapid counter, Jorrel Hato carrying the ball from inside his own half, beating Wieffer and crossing for Joao Pedro to finish against his former club.
Timeline of key events
- 4'
1-0 Lavia. - prods home from close range after a scramble from a corner
- 14'
2-0 Neto. - finishes a low cross from Morgan Rogers
- 24'
Joao Pedro shoots wide on a counter
- 32'
3-0 Joao Pedro. - right-footed finish after a Hato run and cross
- 35'
3-1 Yalcouye. - right-footed shot in off the far post
- Half time:
Chelsea 3 Brighton & Hove Albion 1
- 55'
Fofana booked; Gomez heads wide from the free kick
- 63'
3-2 Joao Pedro (og). - a cross deflects in off the striker
- 68'
Acheampong, Caicedo and James on for Chelsea
- 70'
Dunk booked
- 72'
Perez on for L. Colwill (Chelsea)
- 74'
4-2 Palmer. - drives in from midfield and beats Verbruggen
- 80'
Costinha and David on for Brighton
- 82'
Barco on for Caicedo (Chelsea)
- 90+6'
4-3 Groß. - headed finish
- Full time:
Chelsea 4 Brighton & Hove Albion 3
Brighton responded before the break. Malick Yalcouye pulled one back in the 35th minute with a right-footed shot that went in off the inside of the post, and Chelsea went in 3-1 ahead at half time.
Wesley Fofana was booked in the 55th minute and from the resulting free kick Diego Gomez headed wide with only Martinez to beat. The goalkeeper then made a fine save from Gomez before Brighton reduced the deficit again in the 63rd minute, a cross deflecting in off Joao Pedro for an own goal to make it 3-2.
Alonso responded with a triple change on 68 minutes, sending on Josh Acheampong, Moises Caicedo and Reece James for Lavia, Fofana and Neto, and later replaced Levi Colwill with Josep Maria Perez. In the 74th minute Chelsea restored their two-goal cushion, Cole Palmer driving in from central midfield and beating Verbruggen with a fine strike, Joao Pedro credited with the assist.
Lewis Dunk, Oliver Boscagli and Costinha were all booked late on as Brighton pushed for a way back. Pascal Groß headed in a third for the visitors in the sixth minute of stoppage time to make it 4-3, but Chelsea saw out the closing seconds to claim the win.
Match statistics
| Metric | Chelsea | Brighton & Hove Albion |
|---|---|---|
| Goals | 4 | 3 |
| Yellow Cards | 1 | 3 |
| Red Cards | 0 | 0 |
| Attendance | 39,497 |
Possession, shots, passing and fouls: official match data issued in the press box. Expected goals: third party provider, as published. Saves counted at the ground and verified against the team sheet.
Match details
- Competition
- Premier League
- Venue
- Stamford Bridge, London
- Attendance
- 39,497
- Referee
- Michael Oliver - Assistant Referees: Stuart Burt, James Mainwaring - 4th Official: Thomas Bramall - VAR: Andrew Kitchen - AVAR: Paul Howard
- Chelsea (3-4-2-1)
- Martinez - Fofana (67, Acheampong), Lacroix, L. Colwill (c) (72, Perez) - Gusto, Palmer, Lavia (68, James), Hato - Neto (68, Caicedo, 82, Barco), Rogers - Joao Pedro. Unused: Penders (G), Gittens, Welbeck, Estevao
- Brighton & Hove Albion (4-2-3-1)
- Verbruggen - Kadioglu, Vuskovic, Dunk (c), Boscagli - Groß, Wieffer (80, Costinha) - Gomez, Yalcouye (74, Osman), De Cuyper - Kostoulas (80, David). Unused: Steele (G), Struijk, Hadjam, Cozier-Duberry, O'Riley, Oriola
Editorial judgement, not a statistic
William Powell's standout players
Cole Palmer (Chelsea) - Involved in everything and settled the game with a superb individual goal
Jorrel Hato (Chelsea) - Drove the length of the pitch to create the third goal and defended strongly
Emi Martinez (Chelsea) - Commanding on his home debut with several important saves
Pascal Groß (Brighton & Hove Albion) - Kept creating and grabbed a stoppage-time goal to set up a grandstand finish
Selected by William Powell at the ground.
William Powell
Senior Editor · FWA Life Member · Sports Journalist since 1987
William Powell is CUVA Sports' senior editor and lead correspondent, covering football and cricket at the highest level for nearly four decades. A Life Member of the Football Writers' Association, his writing combines deep tactical knowledge with the narrative flair of the best sports journalism.
