Brighton & Hove Albion earned a well-deserved 2-1 victory at Chelsea owing to a breathtaking goal from substitute Julio Enciso.
Chelsea 1-2 Brighton as Enciso wonderstrike gives De Zerbi’s men stylish win
Conor Gallagher’s 13th-minute attempt took a crucial deflection from Lewis Dunk to give Frank Lampard’s team its first goal in four games, ending a run of four games without one. This was Lampard’s first appearance at Stamford Bridge since taking over as interim manager until the end of the season.
Before halfway, Brighton was clearly the superior team on either side of the goal, with Evan Ferguson striking the crossbar before leaving the game due to injury. The great Kaoru Mitoma and Alexis Mac Allister also came close, with the latter being stopped by a superb Kepa Arrizabalaga save.
It was left to the experienced Danny Welbeck to level matters as Ferguson’s replacement stole in between Wesley Fofana and Trevoh Chalobah to convert Pascal Gross’ inswinging cross from the right.
It was a similar story of one-way traffic after the break and Paraguayan teenager Enciso scored his second Premier League goal in sensational fashion, drilling into the top corner from almost 30 yards.
Chelsea vs Brighton final score
| 1H | 2H | Final | |
| CHE | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| BRI | 1 | 1 | 2 |
Goals:
CHE — Conor Gallagher (Mykhailo Mudryk) — 13th minute
BRI — Danny Welbeck (Pascal Gross) — 42nd minute
BRI — Julio Enciso (Solly March) — 42nd minute
De Zerbi masterstroke highlights gulf between Brighton and Chelsea
By the time Gallagher’s fortunate goal arrived, Ferguson and Mac Allister had already squandered two excellent opportunities, and the Republic of Ireland striker had also hit the crossbar while Mitoma harassed Chelsea’s right back Chalobah.
However, Roberto De Zerbi ran into trouble with another explosive winger he is familiar with. In response to the former manager of Shakhtar Donetsk’s statement that he hoped Mykhailo Mudryk wouldn’t start, the much-maligned Ukrainian international provided a needed reminder of his abilities. Joel Veltman received a warning for an almost admirably sloppy foul in which he ultimately brought Mudryk to the ground by the upper back.
Injury meant Veltman did not see the half-hour. On came Enciso to add extra verve to a Brighton attack already brimming with creative intent. So much so, playmaker Pascal Gross was able to drop into right-back, masterfully dictate forward play and set up Welbeck’s equaliser.
A shrieking klaxon of a problem should result from a career offensive midfielder marking the most dangerous opposition attacker. However, not for this Brighton squad. They are in perfect sync with their management and one another, so it was a chance to become even more explosive with the ball and usher in a second rising Premier League star for good measure.
