A brilliant goal from Kaoru Mitoma and a brace from Yankuba Minteh helped Brighton & Hove Albion secure a 3-0 win over Chelsea in the Premier League. This marked Brighton’s second victory over Chelsea in less than a week, after losing the previous four encounters between the teams.
Despite it being Valentine’s Day, there was no warm reception for returning players at the Amex. Marc Cucurella was booed whenever he touched the ball, and Moisés Caicedo quickly went in with some tough tackles. Chelsea had a frustrating start, with Cole Palmer missing two chances early on, both going wide, and Noni Madueke being forced off with an injury after just 21 minutes.
Mitoma, who had scored the winner in their previous FA Cup match, opened the scoring with a brilliant piece of skill. He controlled a long pass from Bart Verbruggen perfectly and calmly placed it into the bottom corner. Chelsea’s Enzo Fernández had a goal ruled out for a push on Joël Veltman, and Brighton soon doubled their lead. A clearance from Levi Colwill was kept out by Filip Jörgensen, but the ball fell to Danny Welbeck, who set up Minteh to score with a composed finish after cutting inside Cucurella.
After Georginio Rutter fired over the bar and Carlos Baleba’s shot was blocked, Minteh sealed his brace and Brighton’s third goal in the 63rd minute. Colwill, a former Brighton player, felt he was fouled, but Minteh, combining well with Welbeck, beat Cucurella once more and scored, helped by a deflection off Trevoh Chalobah.
Mitoma later had a chance, but his shot was saved, and Jörgensen also got away with a poor pass that João Pedro fired wildly over after coming on. The Brighton forward also missed a header, and Jörgensen saved another shot from Veltman off the post before the match ended. Brighton celebrated a well-deserved victory, ending a five-match winless streak at home.
The result also highlighted Chelsea’s poor away form, with just two wins in their last eight league matches since Boxing Day. Palmer’s visible frustration at the end summed up Chelsea’s tough evening.
