Chelsea Survive Brighton Fightback in Seven-Goal Thriller

Chelsea held on to defeat Brighton & Hove Albion 4–3 at Stamford Bridge on Sunday, maintaining their perfect start to the Premier League season under new manager Xabi Alonso.

The Blues made a blistering start, racing into a 3–0 lead within 32 minutes. Romeo Lavia opened the scoring in the fourth minute, Pedro Neto doubled Chelsea’s advantage ten minutes later, before former Brighton forward João Pedro added a third.

Brighton refused to surrender, however. Malick Yalcouyé pulled one back before half-time, while an unfortunate João Pedro own goal in the 63rd minute reduced Chelsea’s advantage to just one goal.

With the visitors pushing for an equaliser, Cole Palmer restored Chelsea’s two-goal cushion in the 74th minute, curling a composed finish into the bottom corner. Pascal Groß scored deep into stoppage time to make it 4–3, but Chelsea survived the late pressure to secure all three points.

The match also marked Emiliano Martínez’s Chelsea debut. The Argentine goalkeeper made several important saves despite conceding three goals, while Chelsea’s attacking quality once again proved decisive.