Brighton 3-0 Chelsea: Minteh destroys Cucurella to top ratings

Scores of nines in WAB Player Ratings are hard to come by – but unsurprisingly, Yankubu Minteh achieves the feat for completely destroying Marc Cucurella as Brighton beat Chelsea 3-0 at the Amex.

There is no love lost between Cucurella and Albion fans thanks to the manner in which the left back departed Brighton. Downing tools to force through a move. And then saying he always dreamed of playing for Chelsea.

Just a few months after dreaming of playing for Barcelona. Had the snake just admitted he wanted to join the Blues for cold, hard, cash reasons, he would be less despised.

This meant that whilst Brighton winning against Chelsea for the second time in six days was enjoyable in itself, the role Cucurella played made it even more magnificent.

Every time Minteh got on the ball, you could feel the panic in Cucurella. The curly haired defender ended up turned inside out for Albion goals two and three, both scored by Minteh.

It was a dazzling display of wing play underlining why Brighton felt the need to pay £30 million for a player who was then just 19-years-old.

Once Minteh adds greater consistency to his game – something which always tends to come later with wide players – his ability level is frightening.

Just ask Cucurella. Or read our Brighton 3-0 Chelsea player ratings from a magnificent Valentine’s Night.

Bart Verbruggen – 7.56

The perfect way to respond to heavy criticism after his catastrophic error in the FA Cup win over Chelsea six days earlier. Good stop to prevent an Adam Webster own goal and preserve the clean sheet late on. And whilst the Kaoru Mitoma goal was all about the first touch, the pinpoint 70 yard ball forward from Verbruggen was magnificent.

Joel Veltman – 7.33

Played his part in the destruction of Cucurella by providing a solid base behind Minteh, allowing the winger to concentrate fully on attacking duties. Even managed to push forward himself at times, most notably when hitting the post late on.

Adam Webster – 7.89

Always a concern about Webster coming back from injury given he famously takes a while to shake off the rust and get match fit. But he was superb in Brighton 3-0 Chelsea and rightly takes his highest player ratings score of the season so far. Should he now be ahead of Lewis Dunk in thecentre back pecking order?

Jan Paul van Hecke – 7.56

A steady job alongside Webster at the back. Helped by Chelsea having no recognised number nine available despite spending over £1.5 billion pounds on new players. Paul Winstanley needs a new laptop by the sounds of things…

Tariq Lamptey – 7.56

Another solid showing as he continues to show his worth at left back by bouncing back from that nightmare at Nottingham Forest in impressive style. Surely worth a new contract… presuming he is happy knowing he may not necessarily be a first choice when Pervis Estupinan is fit and around.

Carlos Baleba – 8.00

The memory of Cole Palmer running roughshod through Brighton’s midfield and defence when scoring four times in 45 minutes at Stamford Bridge earlier in the season still has me waking up in the night in a cold sweat. Baleba was a massive reason in ensuring Palmer was unable to get anywhere near repeating his record breaking antics.

Jack Hinshelwood – 7.33

Never makes headlines or steals the show like others around him. What makes Hinshelwood so important is the quiet and effective way he goes about his business. Something which may well appeal to Thomas Tuchel, who was watching on from the stands before naming his first England squad next month.

YANKUBU MINTEH – 9.22

For all the enjoyment we have taken from the demise of Cucurella, there are not many full backs in the Premier League who could live with Minteh in this sort of mood. His best game in a Brighton shirt.

Georginio Rutter – 8.33

The Albion have looked much better in the past two matches with Rutter playing as number 10 in place of Joao Pedro. Viewed in January as something of a super sub by Fabian Hurzeler, the mad Frenchman has to be one of the first names on the team sheet in that vital role behind Welbeck for the foreseeable future.

Kaoru Mitoma – 8.78

Greatest first touch ever from a Brighton player? One of the best Albion goals ever from a technical point of view? Mitoma deserves all the superlatives which have come his way. £90 million of sports washing oil money was never going to be enough.

Danny Welbeck – 7.89

Two assists makes a score of 7.89 in the Brighton 3-0 Chelsea player ratings seem a little low. Sheer tenacity and pure work rate created the last goal when he robbed ex-Albion teammate Levi Colwill of possession before sending Minteh away against Cucurella.

Joao Pedro – 6.33

Should have added a fourth within minutes of coming on but could only fire over the bar after being gifted the ball by Blues goalkeeper Filip Jorgensen

Diego Gomez – 6.44

Neat and tidy when introduced to shore up the midfield in closing stages. Helped see out the clean sheet quite comfortably.

Yasin Ayari – 6.56

Best of the substitutes with one magnificent pass almost contributing to a fourth goal towards the end.

Matt O’Riley – 6.33

The same impact as Gomez really.

The WAB Player Ratings are formulated using marks out of 10 given by Brighton fans via social media. To have your scores included, follow We Are Brighton on Twitter or We Are Brighton on Bluesky and look out for the player rating thread after each game.