Graham Potter, the manager of Chelsea, had a terrible experience visiting his old team, Brighton, when the Seagulls outclassed his team at the Amex. Leandro Trossard scored after just five minutes on the south coast after Thiago Silva had previously been forced to block two Brighton opportunities. Ruben Loftus-Cheek then scored an own goal, and just before halftime, Trevoh Chalobah left Kepa Arrizabalaga pulling the ball out of his net. This made Potter’s miserable afternoon even worse.
The Chelsea manager, who received loud jeers, made adjustments at halftime, and Kai Havertz did manage to score a goal just after the break to give the Blues hope of a comeback. However, Brighton was unstoppable, holding on to win all three points and even adding a fourth late on to hand Potter his first Premier League loss since taking over at Stamford Bridge.
The Performing Side:
Leandro Trossard: The Brighton forward who scored the game’s first goal and put on yet another excellent performance at the Amex was too much for Chelsea to handle. Trossard scored his 25th Premier League goal, giving him seven for the year. With goals against Chelsea as well as Manchester City, Liverpool, and Manchester City in 2022–2023, he is also demonstrating that he is the man for the big moment. Naturally, Trossard has drawn admiring looks from Graham Potter’s new employers, and after once again impressing Brighton, rumors of a move will undoubtedly intensify.
Brighton fans: On Saturday, Brighton supporters undoubtedly had a good time as they witnessed Potter and Marc Cucurella’s unpleasant returns to the south coast. Potter was soundly defeated by Roberto De Zerbi, his opponent, amid the joyous cries of the home crowd. After moving from the south coast to Stamford Bridge in a £55 million transfer, Cucurella was also attacked by supporters. The defender was jeered early on, and Brighton supporters would have liked watching Pervis Estupinan, who took his place, excel as Cucurella battled and was hooked on the hour.
Edouard Mendy: After replacing the unfortunate Kepa, who appeared to sustain an injury, at halftime, Mendy might just have a chance at atonement at Chelsea. The 30-year-old had not played since the team’s victory over West Ham at the beginning of September, but if Kepa is now forced to sit out, the player might see more action. Mendy did exhibit some signs of nervousness and awkwardness in the first few minutes of the second half, but it now seems as though he may have a chance to reclaim the No. 1 slot.
The Losing Side:
Graham Potter: In a dominant first-half performance, Brighton led Chelsea by three goals at the break. It is fair to assume that the Seagulls could have added a few more goals as they ripped through Chelsea at will. Simply put, Brighton’s passion and determination were too strong for their opponents, who gave up the ball meekly and suffered their first league loss under their new manager. Although Potter made adjustments during the break, which resulted in some improvement, it was a case of too little, too late on the part of the Chelsea manager.
Christian Pulisic: The USMNT player was selected by Potter for his starting lineup for the second straight game, but after another lackluster showing, he is set to return to the bench. When Conor Gallagher’s shot was deflected into his path by Robert Sanchez in the first half, Pulisic truly ought to have scored, but he was unable to even hit the goal, much less test the goalie. It was a disastrous miss. Pulisic essentially missed the rest of the action, so it was not surprising to see him hooked early in the second half as Potter frantically tried to get back into the game.
The back three: Chelsea switched back to a back three, but the move backfired horribly as the Seagulls scored four goals and will feel like they should have had more. Throughout the entire 90 minutes, the visitors were defensively weak as De Zerbi’s attacking, the aggressive strategy paid off and exposed Chelsea’s defensive weaknesses. Trevoh Chalobah and Cucurella struggled to keep up with Thiago Silva, and neither player received much assistance from Sterling or Pulisic, the two wing-backs. Given the importance of the upcoming matches against Arsenal, Manchester City, and Newcastle before the 2022 World Cup, Potter may decide to change his formation at this time.
Chelsea Ratings: Defence
Kepa Arrizabalaga: I wasn’t able to stop any of the goals because Brighton was just able to overwhelm Chelsea’s defense. taken off at halftime after allegedly becoming hurt.
Trevoh Chalobah: Chalobah couldn’t handle Pervis Estupinan and scored an own goal to make it 3-0 for Brighton.
Thiago Silva: The Brazilian’s performance was littered with mistakes. He did block two Brighton shots, but one of them was a result of his own error. The defender was also responsible for the first goal, and his sloppy touch allowed the guests to score a fourth late in the game.
Marc Cucurella: The left-back had a difficult time upon his return to Brighton as he was jeered by the locals and found Solly March to be a difficult foe. after an hour, take off, and Ben Chilwell took his place.
Potter’s first game back in charge of Brighton was a disaster. His squad was outmatched in the first half and might have fallen behind by more than 3-0. At the interval, Potter did make adjustments, but it was too late and his team was soundly defeated.
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