Frank Lampard’s winless return to Chelsea continued as Brighton earned a thoroughly-deserved 2-1 win at Stamford Bridge.
After defeats to Wolves and Real Madrid, Chelsea went in search of a confidence-boosting victory against the Seagulls, before attention turns back to the Champions League in midweek.
Conor Gallagher put the Blues in front, but it was one-way traffic throughout the match and Brighton eventually got themselves into a position that their performance deserved.
Danny Welbeck equalised before the break and, after a constant stream of missed chances, Julio Enciso netted a stunning winner from distance with 20 minutes remaining.
Chelsea made a number of changes with that second leg against Real in mind, as the likes of N’Golo Kante, Thiago Silva and Joao Felix dropped out of the starting lineup.
Mykhailo Mudryk was one of those who did start and he had perhaps his best spell in a Chelsea shirt, getting Joel Veltman booked early on, curling an effort wide and then providing the assist for the Blues to break the deadlock.
The winger drove forward in the middle of the pitch, played a clever reverse pass to Gallagher and he fired a first-time effort from just outside the area beyond Robert Sanchez, with the help of a big deflection off Lewis Dunk.
Any early promise quickly disappeared though as Chelsea were pinned back and Brighton established complete dominance. Kaoru Mitoma caused the hosts all sorts of problems and went close on several occasion, forcing Kepa Arrizabalaga into a sharp save after a brilliant run.
Evan Ferguson, who was denied by the woodwork in the opening stages, also found the Chelsea goalkeeper in his way, powering a header at goal but injuring himself in the process. Danny Welbeck was introduced and had a swift impact. With pretty much his first touch after coming on, the former Arsenal striker headed home at the back post to give Brighton a more than deserved equaliser.
The chances continued to flow for the Brighton after the break, even if the goals somehow didn’t. Julio Enciso and Danny Welbeck both had efforts saved by Kepa early in the second-half, and the pair went even closer on the hour mark. Enciso fired against the post from a tight angle, and Welbeck was unable to turn the rebound into an empty net.
Mitoma then went close again, as Lampard turned to his bench and made a quadruple change to try and halt the one-way traffic. Joao Felix, Reece James, Hakim Ziyech and Mateo Kovacic were all introduced.
In made little difference though, with Brighton continuing to create and waste chances, and for all the clear-cut opportunites that were missed, it was a wonderful strike from distance that finally got them in front. Enciso was allowed all the time in the world to let fly, and he duly found the top corner.
