BRIGHTON 4-1 CHELSEA: Blues boss Graham Potter suffered his first defeat in his new job, with Chelsea scoring two first-half own goals against their boss’s former club
Chelsea manager Graham Potter returned to his old stomping ground as the Blues faced Brighton, less than two months after trading the Amex Stadium for Stamford Bridge, and two own goals ensured he suffered a first defeat in his new job.
The Blues almost got off to a nightmare start, relying on Thiago Silva to head off the line twice inside the opening five minutes to deny Leandro Trossard and Pervis Estupinan. The fast-starting Seagulls weren’t to be denied, though, with tidy footwork from Trossard allowing the Belgian to round Kepa and find the bottom corner.
It was 2-0 inside 15 minutes, with Ruben Loftus-Cheek deflecting a corner into his own net, but Chelsea had their chances with Christian Pulisic missing a golden opportunity to pull one back. It was three before the break, though, with the unfortunate Trevoh Chalobah following Loftus-Cheek in scoring an own goal.
Potter made some tactical tweaks at the break, and was rewarded with a goal back from Kai Havertz, and then threw Ben Chilwell and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang into the fold as the visitors looked to add to their tally. They continued to create, with Havertz blazing a great chance over the bar, but Brighton got a fourth through Pascal Gross late on to secure a first win under new boss Roberto De Zerbi.