Chelsea continued their European dominance with a fourth consecutive win by beating Brighton & Hove Albion 2-1 at the Amex Stadium on Wednesday.
Cole Palmer’s excellent header – his 22nd Premier League goal in a brilliant debut campaign – put the Blues ahead, and Christopher Nkunku gave Chelsea breathing room in the second half.
Chelsea captain Reece James was sent off for kicking out on Joao Pedro late on, and Danny Welbeck halved the deficit in stoppage time, but the visitors held on and moved up to sixth ahead of Newcastle United, who Lost to Manchester United 3-2.
A draw or win against AFC Bournemouth on Sunday will ensure the Blues keep that spot and qualify for Europe. Fifth place remains a possibility, but Tottenham Hotspur would have to lose to bottom club Sheffield United.
How was the match?
Chelsea thought they had earned the early chance to score from the spot as Facundo Buonotte’s challenge on Mark Cucurella was penalized, but the penalty award was overturned after a VAR review.
Mauricio Pochettino’s side continued to push for the opener as Malo Gusto’s deflected effort was palmed away by Bart Verbruggen, and they finally succeeded in the 34th minute.
Cucurella fed the ball in from the left before sending a cross into the box, and Palmer arrived to send a looping header over the goalkeeper and into the back of the net.
Nicholas Jackson had a great chance to double Chelsea’s lead in first-half stoppage time, but failed to convert Palmer’s cross on the volley. Substitute Nkunku came close shortly after the break, but his effort from the edge of the box missed by a narrow margin.
Brighton should have equalized in the 57th minute as Tariq Lamptey’s dipping cross left Pascal Gross completely unmarked, but he somehow curled his shot wide from inside the six-yard box.
Pochettino’s men punished that miss seven minutes later, with Gusto turning the ball back for Nkunku to deflect into the bottom corner with a first-time finish.
James was ruled out for Pedro as stoppage time approached following a VAR review. It was the right-back’s second red card of the season, resulting in a four-match suspension, meaning he will miss the first three Premier League matches of the 2024/25 campaign.
Brighton eased the pressure from there and Simon Edingra hit a post on the volley before Welbeck poked home from a Pedro delivery, but Chelsea ultimately held firm.
Pochettino has begun to turn things around since the start of 2024, with Chelsea having scored 32 points in the Premier League since the beginning of January.
Palmer’s contributions have certainly helped the Argentine, with the young attacker scoring the opening goal in nine league games this season.
Chelsea supporters may not have been expecting a late push for the European places, but with the Blues sitting in sixth place heading into the final day, qualification is within their grasp.
WATCH: Palmer – It’s a big deal to have Europe in your hands
As for Brighton, they have failed to concede an early goal in their last 11 Premier League matches, dating back to the win over Brentford on December 6.
Reaching a top-half finish is now the limit of the Seagulls’ ambitions. They are in 10th place, four points behind ninth-placed West Ham United.
club report
BRIGHTON REPORT | chelsea report
Final Premier League fixtures
important facts
Chelsea have won four consecutive Premier League games for the first time since October 2022, which is the same number of wins as their last 12 matches in the competition (D5 L3).
Only the bottom four Premier League teams – Sheffield United (7), Luton Town (11), Nottingham Forest (13) and Burnley (13) – have collected fewer points than Brighton (18) in 2024.
A total of 137 goals have been scored in Chelsea’s Premier League games this season (75 scored, 62 conceded), the most in a single campaign in the competition.
Palmer has now scored 22 goals for Chelsea in the Premier League this season, more than only Didier Drogba (29 in 2009/10) and Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink (23 in 2000/01 and 2001/02) for the Blues in the same campaign. Have scored more goals.
