Trevoh Chalobah’s second-half red card saw Chelsea collapse dramatically at Stamford Bridge, turning a comfortable one-goal lead into a dismal 3-1 defeat against Brighton & Hove Albion in the Premier League on Saturday.
Dominant first half puts Blues in control
After a disastrous start in their previous league game against Manchester United, Enzo Maresca’s side came out with far more composure and completely dominated the first half. They controlled 70% of possession, outshot their opponents 9-0, and looked destined for a simple victory. Their pressure finally paid off in the 25th minute when a deflected Reece James cross looped to the back post, where an unmarked Enzo Fernández headed the ball into an empty net.
Red card sparks collapse
The tone of the game changed drastically just five minutes into the second half. A poor touch from Andrey Santos put his teammate Trevoh Chalobah into trouble, and the centre-back was subsequently shown a straight red card for the denial of a goalscoring opportunity. Unsurprisingly, Chelsea‘s control of the game evaporated. Maresca sacrificed attacking players for defenders, but the hosts could not hold on.
Danny Welbeck steered home a header with 13 minutes to go to level the scores. As the game entered stoppage time, a last-minute penalty claim from Brighton was waved away by VAR, but the visitors would not be denied. In the 92nd minute, Maxim De Cuyper headed beyond Robert Sánchez to complete the comeback, before Welbeck added a third strike deeper into stoppage time to seal a famous victory. This defeat will be a particularly painful one for Enzo Maresca, as it highlights a mental fragility within his Chelsea squad.
Chelsea player ratings (4-2-3-1)
Ratings provided by FotMob
- GK: Robert Sánchez – 5.8
- RB: Reece James – 6.1
- CB: Trevoh Chalobah – 5.4
- CB: Jorrel Hato – 6.5
- LB: Marc Cucurella – 6.0
- DM: Moisés Caicedo – 7.0
- DM: Andrey Santos – 6.5
- RM: Estêvão – 6.7
- AM: Enzo Fernández – 7.7
- LM: Pedro Neto – 6.4
- ST: João Pedro – 6.3