It is not easy to understand why Mauricio Pochettino has likened himself to a university professor. The Chelsea manager must have felt like he was in charge of a class of unruly toddlers in a performance that started and ended in impressive fashion with Thiago Silva making heroic blocks and Levi Colwill almost giving away a penalty in the 110.e minute and a general atmosphere of chaos that almost allowed Brighton to grab an unearned point.
There were even moments when Chelsea were too intense as they chased just their fourth home win in the Premier League in 2023. They were ready for a fight and were down to ten men when their captain, Conor Gallagher, was sent off just before the end. peace. Pochettino loved the intensity and despaired at the naivete.
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Check? Discipline? Calmness? Forget it. This was Chelsea playing on atmosphere, on emotion, and they needed a combination of togetherness and luck to avoid Brighton’s second-half comeback. Brighton, who started slowly before improving, were furious with the VAR intervention that allowed Enzo Fernández to score the decisive goal from the spot.
Pochettino had said Chelsea must ‘defend as a collective’. His anger was evident after last weekend’s defeat at Newcastle and he sought a response by making four changes. Cole Palmer was a notable omission, Mykhailo Mudryk favored as the playmaker, while it would be interesting to see how Chelsea would fare if their full-backs were all missing. With Axel Disasi replacing Reece James and Malo Gusto on the right, it was almost as if Tony Pulis had taken over from Pochettino for the afternoon.
There would be no doubt about Chelsea’s commitment. Mudryk set the tone by pressing high and conceding a free kick within the opening minute. Brighton, ravaged by injuries and tired after victory at AEK Athens last Thursday, initially found it difficult to compete. They threatened in the second minute, with Simon Adingra almost taking advantage of the indecisiveness between Benoît Badiashile and Robert Sánchez, but a quick look at Roberto De Zerbi’s body language suggested the Italian was not convinced his team were in the races.
Chelsea soon started playing through midfield. Moisés Caicedo ignored the away team’s boos and provided control with his clever pass. Fernández was an elusive opponent for Carlos Baleba and Billy Gilmour. Raheem Sterling tested Brighton on the right.
Chelsea took a deserved lead when Gallagher delivered a corner from the right. Badiashile thwarted himself at the far post and hooked the ball into the six-yard box. Brighton, vulnerable without the suspended Lewis Dunk at the back, were everywhere. No one in green and black tried to stop Fernández from heading home from close range.
De Zerbi’s doubts seemed justified. Nicolas Jackson almost punished a mistake by Jan Paul van Hecke moments later and Brighton conceded a corner in the 21st.st minute. This time it was Jackson who headed back across goal and Colwill who forced the ball over the line for his first goal for the club.
Chelsea were cruising, but just before half-time the mood changed. Brighton moved to the left and Adam Lallana found Facundo Buonanotte. One on one with Colwill, the winger cut in from the right and curled a beautiful shot past Sánchez with his left foot.
Chelsea could have been faultless – Mudryk had been close to making it 3-0 – but now their inexperience took over. They have the most bookings in the league and were down to 10 men when Gallagher, who was fortunate to only get booked for a foul on Buonanotte, lost Gilmour and picked up his second booking for catching the former Chelsea midfielder from behind.
Where was the leadership? Pochettino, aware of the tempestuous nature of his young side, needed a cool head. But for the second week in a row, he was met with inexplicable immaturity from the player wearing the captain’s armband. It’s worth remembering that James, the club captain, was unavailable after picking up two stupid bookings against Newcastle.
Pochettino has a problem. Silva, 39, wore the armband in the second half, but it wasn’t long before Caicedo was shown a yellow card for kicking the ball away. Chelsea was tense. Caicedo came close to a yellow card twice and De Zerbi responded with a quadruple substitution, bringing on Kaoru Mitoma, João Pedro, Pascal Gross and James Milner.
Brighton had done enough to stretch the ten men. They created little and were caught when Chelsea broke from a corner. Jackson released Mudryk with a clever pass and the Ukrainian went down after being challenged by Milner.
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It was time for a long VAR check. Milner nudged Mudryk and numerous replays suggested a tangle of legs. The contact, however small, was enough for Craig Pawson to point to the spot. Fernández, who had missed his previous penalty, stepped up and sent Jason Steele the wrong way with his penalty.
Chelsea fell back as they protected their lead. Brighton pushed and Sánchez made a stunning stop from Gross. There were 10 minutes of added time and Brighton pulled a goal back when Pedro met Milner’s corner with a glancing header.
The nerves took over. Silva made a crucial challenge and Sánchez saved well from Pedro. Then Colwill extended an arm as he tried to block a cross. Pawson pointed to the spot and the Brighton bench celebrated, but replays showed the ball had hit Colwill in the face. Chelsea escaped. Pure desire persuaded them. Of course there was a fight after full time.