Brighton beat Chelsea 3-0 in Premier League
Minteh scored twice in thumping Albion win at Amex Stadium
Mitoma put Seagulls ahead after outrageous first touch & curling finish
Brighton move up to eighth with win as Chelsea stay fourth
Well, who predicted that one then?
It's Brighton who end Valentine's Day happy as we have seven more matches coming your way tomorrow.
Join us from 11:00 GMT for Leicester v Arsenal. Goodnight!
FT: Brighton 3-0 Chelsea
Another Saturday full of fun is coming your way tomorrow.
Image source, Getty ImagesFT: Brighton 3-0 Chelsea
A huge win for Brighton as they jump into eighth. The Seagulls are just six points behind Chelsea in fourth spot. Who'd have thought that after that 7-0 loss at the City Ground?
Image source, Getty ImagesFT: Brighton 3-0 Chelsea
Jamie Carragher
Former Liverpool defender on Sky Sports
Chelsea has been deemed in the last couple of years a project and I think the natives will be getting restless.
Pochettino had an incredible run at the end of the season. I think in terms of the numbers you have to look at, there is not going to be much difference between the seasons.
I think it is a real worry if they aren't getting Champions League football. They have spent big boy money and they were one of the big boys before they even spent that money.
FT: Brighton 3-0 Chelsea
Gary Neville
Former Manchester United defender on Sky Sports
Nkunku and Palmer, I didn't see them make one forceful run in behind the Brighton defence.
Brighton's defenders waltzed through that game tonight.
The Brighton players made runs in behind all night. It is simple.
FT: Brighton 3-0 Chelsea
Brighton manager Fabian Hurzeler speaking to Sky Sports: "I wouldn't say it was complete, we suffered at the start and then after the first goal we got slightly too passive. We defended quite well and that was the key today. Compactness, intensity and always doing it together."
On Kaoru Mitoma's goal: "Sometimes you can't explain the things from special players. It was a special action from him and he deserves it because he works hard every day. He is fully committed to this club and I am glad he got it."
On Yankuba Minteh's influence: "I think he tries to improve in every aspect of the game. Defensive work is key and the attacking players have to be part of it. When you commit to the team, I am convinced you will get the chances in the transition and he did."
On Brighton bouncing back: "It is not about me. It is about the club and I give the best for the success of the club and to support my players. I get judged by the results but I will always give everything for the club and in the end, the players are the most important. They need to show togetherness and I am happy for them.
"For me, the 7-0 [loss to Nottingham Forest] is still a topic but trust the process. It is only one game and we shouldn't overanalyse now. It happens and we are very sorry to the supporters because they deserve more but all the staff worked really hard to give the supporters a performance they deserved tonight.
"It is important to not overreact when you have positives as well. It is important to understand why we get these things, because of hard training. if we keep the standards, let's see what happens."
FT: Brighton 3-0 Chelsea
Jamie Carragher
Former Liverpool defender on Sky Sports
This idea that this project is going to take three years, the problem is that the best players won't wait that long. You can see a frustration starting to build. Cole Palmer is good enough to compete for the biggest honours.
Nottingham Forest are third and Chelsea have spent over a billion pounds. They are basically playing once a week. They have to get Champions League. If they don't get Champions League it will be a disaster.
FT: Brighton 3-0 Chelsea
Chelsea manager Enzo Maresca, speaking to BBC Sport: "Probably since I arrived that is the worst performance, especially in the moment we are in. We are fourth in the league and winning tonight you can go one point from third and make the gap to the rest bigger and the performance is not one you want to offer so we are very upset and sorry for the fans that were here.
"For half an hour I think we were in control but after this moment [Kaoru Mitoma's goal] we looked like we could concede chances easily and we struggled to create chances. The reason why is because of the injuries in this moment especially with the strikers...important players are out but we need to find a solution.
"It is difficult when you don't have a proper number nine. So you always have to find a different solution. In the last third we struggled doing things that until a week or two ago we were doing well.
"This is the worst moment since I arrived but we are still there and we need to finish in the best way."
FT: Brighton 3-0 Chelsea
Gary Neville
Former Manchester United defender on Sky Sports
I think Chelsea, pound for pound, should be able to do what Rutter and Welbeck are doing.
Nkunku and Palmer are very good players but they were very poor tonight. These two are very talented players. I thought they were useless as a pair tonight.
This is where their team needs them and they really need to turn up.
FT: Brighton 3-0 Chelsea
Brighton boss Fabian Hurzeler, speaking to BBC Sport: "I am happy for the team. I think they defended well together and showed togetherness on the pitch. In general it was a good performance."
On Kaoru Mitoma's goal: "I think we have to also mention Bart Verbruggen, who made a mistake in the last game, for showing this personality and making this assist. It was a great touch and selection from Mitoma but you always need somebody to assist you."
On responding to their heavy defeat at Nottingham Forest: "I thought the 7-0 was crazy. We don't want things like this to happen but we analysed it and it was important to stay calm and do the basic things right. We tried to work hard and bounce back on the pitch because talking does not help in moments like this. The most important thing is we make the Seagulls supporters proud and give them what they deserved.
"I always say that I trust the process and I did not change my approach. I knew why it happened and we analysed it and I did not overreact. The players showed great character and the right reaction."
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Maresca did the same at Leicester. Started well, limped over the line. Not a great manager, one plan, once its found out it leads to boring predictable football.
Jason
FT: Brighton 3-0 Chelsea
Chelsea manager Enzo Maresca speaking to Sky Sports: "This result the frustration is about everything. For sure, we feel really sorry for the fans that come here and the moment that we are in, the position we are in, we need to do much better than what we have done tonight.
"I think in terms of controlling the game or keeping the ball we did that. But I said before the game when you don't have a nine who can be a threat we need to find different solutions. It is not only about chances.
"There are many things we have to do better. We still have many games to go and we are still in a good position. We need to do our best and try to finish in the best way.
"We are in a moment when we feel we can concede easily and struggle to score. I think before the goal they didn't have some chances. There are many things we can do better.
"It is not only mentally. When you play these games in the moment we are, where you can make the gap bigger to the ones behind us and you perform like we did tonight, there are many things that we need to do better.
"I feel sorry for the fans. It is not the right performance that we can offer, especially at this moment in the season. We need to stick together.
"I feel pressure always. Tonight the performance was the worst since I arrived so it is not the right moment but we are still in fourth and in the race to finish in Europe."
FT: Brighton 3-0 Chelsea
Time to hear from Chelsea boss Enzo Maresca after a frustrating night.
FT: Brighton 3-0 Chelsea
Brighton striker Danny Welbeck speaking to Sky Sports: "We feel it as a group in the dressing room and the fans produce the atmosphere. A lot of stuff had happened and it comes from the fans. We just want to make it a really good game. A really good rivalry. Fierce and we want to go win for them."
On Mitoma's goal: "It was slow motion for me. He has got an amazing first touch. He has got a tremendous ability to bring it down and kill the ball instantly. Impeccable first touch. It is incredible. What a goal. It was a wow moment and seeing it from behind and how he brought it down. What a goal.
"He has got the potential to play for the top teams. You saw today the ability he can produce on a football pitch is amazing. There are always bits he can improve on but he works so hard and is always wanting to improve."
On linking up with his fellow attackers: "I enjoy it. To have someone to play off. I think we have done that a lot in the recent weeks and it has been missing a little bit. The manager wants us to have those combinations and it is something we are going to keep working on.
"It was nice to get the two assists and Minteh got the two goals today. I am looking for the refund next week! When we play as individuals we are not as strong but when we play together it is amazing."
FT: Brighton 3-0 Chelsea
Kaoru Mitoma was awarded Player of the Match and rightly so for that wonderous goal. Here's his touch map after he dominated the left flank for Brighton.
Image source, BBC SportFT: Brighton 3-0 Chelsea
Whatever you do with your weekend, just make sure you watch THAT Kaoru Mitoma goal. Incredible.
FT: Brighton 3-0 Chelsea
Brighton winger Yankuba Minteh speaking to Sky Sports: "I think the compactness of the team was good and the team always communicate with me and push me.
"I think everybody has helped me a lot. I went to Feyenoord and played one year and now I am back in the Premier League everything is going well."
Dreaming of European football? "Yes. Dreaming."
FT: Brighton 3-0 Chelsea
Brighton goalkeeper Bart Verbruggen speaking to Sky Sports: "I felt we had a lot of control in the game. Three goals, a clean sheet, what more can you ask for?"
On his assist for Kaoru Mitoma: "We train it and I saw the space in behind. It was an unbelievable touch and a very good finish."
On the win: "The compactness was very good. We had some spells where we had to sit deep and I don't think there were a lot of shots we had to deal with and it was a good win.
"We needed to show a reaction and the boys did that. Now we have to keep going and raising the bar and going again."
Image source, Getty Images#bbcfootball, text 81111 (UK only - standard rates apply) or WhatsApp 03301231826
I’m so used to Brighton selling their best players… Mitoma is a find and I’m so relieved we held onto him. What a touch and what a finish!
Catie
FT: Brighton 3-0 Chelsea
Brighton forward Danny Welbeck, speaking to Premier League Productions: "It was great. It is a big three points. It has been a massive couple of weeks for us after a horrible result and it was important we reacted in the right way."
On Kaoru Mitoma's goal: "When I saw his first touch…I’ve seen him do it countless times in training. It was impeccable. It was a thing of beauty. It was amazing. Great goal.
"He has a great first touch. I’ve seen it in training all the time and he has a way of evading a defender with his first touch. It is not through luck, he has worked on it his whole career. I am so pleased we got the win today. It puts us on the right track to finish the season strongly."
On bouncing back: "There was obviously something wrong against Forest. We had to look at ourselves and have some honest conversations in the dressing room and with the manager. It was something we could not just gloss over. We had to have that feeling of what it was like and carry it with us."
Image source, Getty Images
Kaoru Mitoma's sixth league goal this season set Brighton on their way
Kaoru Mitoma scored a superb opener as Brighton loosened Chelsea's grip on a place in the top four of the Premier League with their second victory over the Blues inside a week.
The result means the Seagulls, who also knocked Enzo Maresca's side out of the FA Cup last Saturday, move up to eighth in the table, four points adrift of Manchester City in fifth.
City, Newcastle and Bournemouth, who all have a game in hand, have the opportunity to leapfrog Chelsea if they win on Saturday.
Japan forward Mitoma set the hosts on their way, superbly controlling goalkeeper Bart Verbruggen's long pass forward with a delicate touch, before cutting inside Trevoh Chalobah and curling a low effort past Filip Jorgensen into the right corner of the Chelsea net.
From that point on the result rarely looked in doubt as Brighton deservedly recorded their first home league win since 9 November.
Yankuba Minteh added their second before the break with a low close-range effort after some excellent work from the impressive attacking duo of Danny Welbeck and Georginio Rutter.
While Chelsea controlled possession for long periods, they struggled to fashion many clear-cut opportunities against Fabian Hurzeler's side aside from an early Cole Palmer effort that flashed wide and an Enzo Fernandez header that was disallowed for a push on home defender Joel Veltman.
Gambia forward Minteh rounded off the scoring for Brighton just after the hour mark, with Chelsea, who looked shaky in defence all evening, exposed down their left as the winger drove a low effort past Jorgensen at his near post.
Chelsea's 'worst performance' - Maresca
Brighton came into this contest looking to avoid a third consecutive league defeat and the way they celebrated with their fans at the final whistle suggests that the humiliating 7-0 loss at Nottingham Forest has been quickly cast aside.
They were sharp in and out of possession and had a focal point up front unlike Chelsea, with Nicolas Jackson's absence keenly felt as the visitors failed to muster a shot on target despite attempting 717 passes to Brighton's 320.
The hosts also showed greater intensity to win the ball back in key areas with Chalobah's rushed clearance contributing to their second goal, and Welbeck pressuring Levi Colwill into a mistake for the third.
While Chelsea were only narrowly beaten in the FA Cup, this was a far more humbling experience, with Veltman threatening to add to their miserable trip to the south coast late on, when he hit the post.
On this evidence there are plenty of issues for Maresca to address, with the Italian labelling his team's display as their "worst" since he took the helm last summer.
"The performance is not one you want to offer so we are very upset and sorry for the fans that were here," Maresca said.
"They are completely right to be upset, especially in this moment of the season. To come here and play in the way we played, not on the ball, in terms of desire, we probably need to show more."
Noni Madueke limped off early on to add to Chelsea's growing injury woes and Palmer, whose sparkling form has helped carry the club into a position to compete for a Champions League place, appeared out of sorts.
Marc Cucurella looked vulnerable down their left, with Madueke's replacement Jadon Sancho struggling to make any impact and the defensive errors that have underpinned their season were again evident to see.
'You always need someone who assists you' - Hurzeler praises Verbruggen
After the opportunity to rate players has closed, the score displayed represents the average from all the submissions by BBC Sport users.
| Position | Team | Played | Won | Drawn | Lost | Goals For | Goals Against | Goal Difference | Points | Form, Last 6 games, Oldest first |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 24 | 17 | 6 | 1 | 58 | 23 | 35 | 57 |
| |
| 2 | 24 | 14 | 8 | 2 | 49 | 22 | 27 | 50 |
| |
| 3 | 24 | 14 | 5 | 5 | 40 | 27 | 13 | 47 |
| |
| 4 | 25 | 12 | 7 | 6 | 47 | 34 | 13 | 43 |
| |
| 5 | 24 | 12 | 5 | 7 | 48 | 35 | 13 | 41 |
| |
| 6 | 24 | 12 | 5 | 7 | 42 | 29 | 13 | 41 |
| |
| 7 | 24 | 11 | 7 | 6 | 41 | 28 | 13 | 40 |
| |
| 8 | 25 | 9 | 10 | 6 | 38 | 38 | 0 | 37 |
| |
| 9 | 24 | 10 | 7 | 7 | 34 | 37 | -3 | 37 |
| |
| 10 | 24 | 9 | 9 | 6 | 36 | 32 | 4 | 36 |
| |
| 11 | 24 | 9 | 4 | 11 | 42 | 42 | 0 | 31 |
| |
| 12 | 24 | 7 | 9 | 8 | 28 | 30 | -2 | 30 |
| |
| 13 | 24 | 8 | 5 | 11 | 28 | 34 | -6 | 29 |
| |
| 14 | 24 | 8 | 3 | 13 | 48 | 37 | 11 | 27 |
| |
| 15 | 24 | 6 | 9 | 9 | 25 | 30 | -5 | 27 |
| |
| 16 | 24 | 7 | 6 | 11 | 29 | 46 | -17 | 27 |
| |
| 17 | 24 | 5 | 4 | 15 | 34 | 52 | -18 | 19 |
| |
| 18 | 24 | 4 | 5 | 15 | 25 | 53 | -28 | 17 |
| |
| 19 | 24 | 3 | 7 | 14 | 22 | 49 | -27 | 16 |
| |
| 20 | 24 | 2 | 3 | 19 | 18 | 54 | -36 | 9 |
|
Manager: Fabian Hürzeler
Formation: 5 - 4 - 1
Manager: Enzo Maresca
Formation: 4 - 2 - 3 - 1
Manager: Fabian Hürzeler
Formation: 5 - 4 - 1
Manager: Enzo Maresca
Formation: 4 - 2 - 3 - 1
Premier League
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After a five-game unbeaten run against Chelsea in the Premier League (W2 D3), Brighton have now lost each of their last three against them.
Chelsea have lost just one of their seven Premier League away games against Brighton (W4 D2), going down 4-1 in October 2022.
Having failed to score in five of their first eight Premier League meetings with Chelsea, Brighton have now scored in each of their last seven against them. However, they’ve only kept one clean sheet in their 15 games against the Blues in the competition.
Brighton suffered their heaviest league defeat since August 1958 (0-9 v Middlesbrough) last time out against Nottingham Forest (0-7) and the Seagulls could now lose three Premier League games in a row for the first time since March 2022 (a run of 6 under Graham Potter).
Chelsea are currently on the longest winless streak away from home in the Premier League (D2 L2), going four without victory since beating Spurs 4-3 in early December; the Blues averaged 2.9 goals per game across their first eight away league games of the season but just 0.5 per game across this winless run.
Brighton are unbeaten in their last three Premier League home games against sides starting the day in the top four (W2 D1), though Fabian Hürzeler’s team are winless in five overall at the Amex Stadium since beating then 2nd place Manchester City in November (D3 L2). Â
Only Liverpool have come from behind to avoid defeat in more Premier League games this season than Chelsea (7 times – W3 D4 L5); meanwhile the Blues have won two of their last three league matches when behind at half-time (v Spurs and West Ham), as many as across their previous 31 when trailing at the break (D4 L25).
Only Wolves’ (15.7%) and Manchester City’s (14.5%) opponents are converting their shots at a higher rate than Brighton’s (13.9% - 38/273) in the Premier League this season, while only Wolves (3) and West Ham (3) have netted more own goals than the Seagulls (2).
Cole Palmer scored four goals in the reverse fixture against Brighton earlier this season – the most goals a Chelsea player has scored against an opponent in a single Premier League campaign is five: Gianluca VIalli v Barnsley (1997-98), Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink v Tottenham (2001-02) and Diego Costa v Swansea (2014-15).
Chelsea’s Robert Sánchez (5) and Ipswich Town’s Arijanet Muric (5) are the only players to commit more errors leading to a goal than Brighton and Hove Albion goalkeeper Bart Verbruggen (4) in the Premier League so far this season.
