Brighton 4-1 Chelsea: Potter given a history lesson
Where do you even start with Brighton 4-1 Chelsea? It might be the raging hangover impeding general writing ability, but your correspondent has been sat here for the best part of 40 minutes just staring at a laptop screen not knowing where to begin when relaying the events of what must surely rank as one of the Amex’s greatest day.
To try and garner some form of inspiration, Match of the Day has been watched at WAB Towers. Twice. Whilst eating the remains of last night’s kebab for breakfast. This is how the aftermath of a football day should always look, no?
Other than realising cold mixed lamb and chicken shish is nowhere near as good the next day, the most striking thing about the last half hour has been how touchy Graham Potter was in his post-match interview.
Potter was asked about the reception he received from Albion fans during Brighton 4-1 Chelsea, which was hostile to say the least. Medical experts believe that my vocal chords should recover by the spring of 2026 after the workout they got through booing.
“I have nothing to apologise for. I did a good job here. Brighton are in a good place because of me.” Those were the general sentiments of a man who not only walked out seven days after the transfer window shut at the first whiff of money, but also took five members of staff with him.
Which may well become six if, as expected, Paul Winstanley legs it up the M23 to Stamford Bridge in the coming days. Potter might well have left Brighton in a good place, but he also pillaged and asset stripped the club upon his departure.
That is why every single boo that went his way was justified. It is why the chorus of “You’re getting sacked in the morning” was sung with such glee. It is why “Potter, Potter, what’s the score?” echoed out around a record crowd.
Potter having such a thin skin is nothing new. During his reign as Brighton manager, he would often make not-so-subtle digs at the Amex support when anyone dared to mock or criticise him.
It apparently was not helpful for Albion fans to shout SHOOT during a 0-0 draw with rock-bottom Norwich City which made it three months without Brighton scoring a goal at the Amex.
One hundred people booing after the Albion made it two-and-a-half months without a win following a 0-0 draw with The Leeds United prompted Potter to say that he needed “a history lesson”.
That turned the issue mainstream, when he could have just responded with the stock reply most managers give of fans pay their money and are entitled to their opinion.
Seeing as Potter is so eager to have a history lesson, then how about this? Brighton 4-1 Chelsea made him the first manager to oversee a Blues league defeat against the Albion ever.
In 121 years of Brighton existing as a football club, they had never beaten Chelsea before in a league match. Congratulations Graham, you have entered the record books.
You will also go down in history as the first manager that Roberto De Zerbi beat in his tenure as Brighton boss. And your first loss as Chelsea manager came against the club you walked out on, showing no respect to Tony Bloom who backed you through some terrible runs of results.
Fingers crossed it is not the start of a slippery slope towards the sack. Supporters of your new club from far flung corners of the world were not impressed judging by the reaction online, nor in person at the stadium.
People were streaming out of the Chelsea end with 10 minutes to go and before Brighton had even made it 4-1. And Glow Up Graham had the nerve to criticise Albion fans.
He genuinely had no idea how good he had it down here, overseeing six defeats in succession, a club-record winless home run of 14 games and the worst ever start to a top flight season in Albion history with hardly a murmur of discontent from the terraces.
Now it is De Zerbi who acclaims that unwavering support. He at least appears to appreciate it, heralding the role that the Amex atmosphere played in driving Brighton to beat Chelsea 4-1. Brighton 4-1 Chelsea. Will we ever get bored of saying that?
“Our fans were the best player on the pitch and it is very nice to work in Brighton. I am proud for this,” De Zerbi told the BBC.
It is De Zerbi though who deserves the credit. Tactically, he did a number on Potter. Chelsea have looked dodgy in wide areas since Glow Up Graham walked through the door, not helped by Potter’s continuing desire to look really clever by using players out-of-position.
Striker Raheem Sterling and number 10 Christian Pulisic were the victims of Potter Roulette in Brighton 4-1 Chelsea, being forced into wing back roles. De Zerbi concentrated on making Brighton a threat from the wings, hence the recall of Pervis Estupinan and a full Premier League debut for Kaoru Mitoma.
De Zerbi even went so far as to use Pascal Gross at right back. Potter attempted to dally with Der Kaiser as a full back on a couple of occasions, but every time it was a disaster.
Mark down De Zerbi as making it work within six games of his arrival as another piece of delicious irony to come out of Brighton 4-1 Chelsea.
De Zerbi also has Brighton playing at a far more ferocious tempo than Potter liked. The Albion relentlessly pressed from the first whistle and that led to two good opportunities to take the lead inside of the opening four minutes.
Thiago Silva had to produce two incredible headers off the line from Leandro Trossard. The Vampire of Genk has been heavily linked with a move to Chelsea and he certainly seemed fired up to use this as an audition, not that Potter needs any introduction to his talents.
Trossard led the line as a false nine with Danny Welbeck unwell. Trossard had exemplary support from Solly March and Mitoma out wide, with the latter providing the assist for the opening goal scored with just five minutes on the clock.
Silva gave the ball away to Mitoma, who happily ran at the Chelsea defence. An intelligent square pass found Trossard, he dribbled around Kepa Arrizabalaga and fired into the back of the net. Brighton led and delirium broke out around the Amex.
It did not take long for one to become two. Lewis Dunk shielded the ball out for an Albion corner, March whipped a vicious ball in with pace and Ruben Loftus-Cheek used his knee to divert it into his own net.
Pulisic should have scored from a rebound after an outstanding Robert Sanchez save. The American though produced the sort of finish that Brighton players specialised in under Potter, missing what was essentially an open goal from 15 yards out with Sanchez on the ground.
Next Sanchez leapt like a salmon to palm away a Conor Gallagher flick. The England international had his every touch booed on account of his loan spell with Crystal Palace last season.
Marc Cucurella suffered the same fate having moved from Brighton to Chelsea for £62 million in the summer, going onto make some weird claims like saying he once drove past Stamford Bridge on the way home to Brighton and told his wife it was his dream to play there.
Might want to get your sat nav looked at Marc as that is a pretty bloody weird route to take in the car from London to Brighton.
Brighton added their third three minutes before half time and there was more irony in that Cucurella’s replacement Estpuinan made it happen.
The Ecuadorian international galloped forward from left back to collect a pass from compatriot Moises Caciedo before crossing low and hard into the box. Trevoh Chalobah stuck the ball past Kepa, making it Brighton 3-0 Chelsea.
Want some more irony? Okay! Todd Boehly has taken Potter, Billy Reid, Bjorn Hamberg, Ben Roberts, Bruno, Kyle Macauley, Cucurella… basically anything that is not screwed down from the Amex.
And yet Chelsea players scored two own goals in the space of 30 minutes at the Amex. Maybe Loftus-Cheek and Chalobah felt sorry for the Albion after all that asset stripping? Maybe not.
Kai Havertz powered home a header from a Gallagher cross to cut the Albion’s lead to two within three minutes of the restart.
Sanchez had to make good saves from a Gross own goal attempt and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang as Chelsea began to get on top, causing De Zerbi to look to his bench.
On came Julio Enciso for his Premier League debut and Tariq Lamptey who had not been deemed fit enough to start. Enciso tested Eouard Mendy – on for Kepa at half time – with a distance drive and then went galloping clear on a counter.
The teenager went for goal himself when he should have squared to the unmarked Trossard. That squandered opportunity was due to inexperience, but it was nonetheless frustrating that Brighton had passed up the chance to make it 4-1 and put Chelsea to bed.
Never mind. The fourth to kill the game arrived in stoppage time. De Zerbi had pushed Gross from right back into the number 10 role when Adam Lallana departed and Lamptey entered and it was Der Kaiser who wrapped things up.
Mendy parried an Enciso effort and the loose ball fell to Gross who swept home, before celebrating with his hand over his ear in front of the North Stand and a waving motion which said “That is that”.
And that was that. Potter looked demoralised, Reid had long since given up trying to get in the fourth official’s ear. There was a quick handshake with De Zerbi at full time before the Chelsea coaching team disappeared down the tunnel to one final set of boos.
It was then down to De Zerbi to lead the celebrations on the pitch, his name echoing around the Amex. Brighton have been threatening a victory like this since the day the charismatic Italian took charge for the first time in that enthralling 3-3 draw at Liverpool.
That it came against Potter and Chelsea was the most ironic thing of all those ironic things already listed. Treating Potter with such hostility felt cathartic in a way, but it also proved that Brighton & Hove Albion are bigger than any one coach or player.
The De Zerbi Era has now truly started. Time for Roberto to start making his own history.
