(Football news) Mauricio Pochettino’s team survived a few scares in the first half but Nicolas Jackson’s goal sent Roberto De Zerbi’s team home, giving them their first victory of the month and their first since defeating AFC Wimbledon in the second round.
The Blues created their first opportunity after just three minutes, but Mykhaylo Mudryk’s looping strike was meat and drink for Bart Verbruggen. Lesley Ugochukwu, Cole Palmer, and Ian Maatsen were among those given opportunities by Pochettino on Wednesday night.
After a frenzied start in which Brighton tried to fight fire with fire, they did little to test former goalkeeper Robert Sanchez. However, in the 24th minute, the Spaniard almost played a key role in the defeat of the home team when he passed the ball to Joao Pedro on the edge of the box and sighed with relief as the striker’s chipped shot found the back of the net.
After 33 minutes, the former Seagull delivered a poor pass away from his goal, finding Moises Caicedo despite intense pressure from Carlos Baleba. Sanchez was still trying his best to aid his old team.
Appeals for a foul were ignored, and Ansu Fati found himself one-on-one with Sanchez. However, the Barcelona loanee was unable to put enough force behind his shot, which led to a relatively easy save for the Chelsea custodian in the low area.
In extra time, Chelsea moved to the other end of the pitch in an effort to remove their custodian from danger. Mudryk cut back for Palmer, who nearly scored the game’s opening goal, but the Englishman was unable to find the net from a tight angle.
De Zerbi substituted Solly March for Fati to start the second half, but the visitors fell behind just five minutes later when Palmer threaded a delicate ball through the legs of Jan Paul van Hecke into the path of Jackson. Jackson’s first-time shot trickled past a stranded Verbruggen and into the bottom corner.
Soon after Baleba was forced off due to injury in the 62nd minute, Verbruggen needed to make a superb save to prevent Jackson from scoring twice. Billy Gilmour was then introduced to the Stamford Bridge throng to a standing ovation.
Palmer and Jackson connected again for Jackson to score in the 72nd minute, but Brighton were spared by the offside flag. A minute later, Sanchez atoned for his errors in the first half by making a great stop on March’s diving header.
De Zerbi, who was getting more and more animated, encouraged Brighton to keep up the pressure in the seven minutes of added time, but Pervis Estupinan and Pedro both missed open goals in the closing seconds, and Chelsea held on for a little spell with 10 men as Ben Chilwell gently walked off.
Brighton, who failed to score for the first time this season at Stamford Bridge, go to Aston Villa in Saturday’s midday kickoff, while Chelsea, who are now looking to end their Premier League slump, have until Monday to rest up for a West London derby away to Fulham.
Also read: Newcastle defeat Manchester City by 1-0
