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Chelsea beat Brighton and Hove Albion at the Amex Stadium with a 2-1 victory. Goals from Pedro and Eden Hazard sealed the deal for the Blues, who continue their charge towards an exigent top 4 race. Solly March scored the solitary goal for the Seagulls.
They stamped their presence on proceedings and never looked back until Brighton found the back of the net. With over 68% possession in the first hour or so, the Blues looked like they were on the driver's seat, but March's goal infused a sense of panic amongst their ranks.
In the end, they were made to work hard for the win, but Maurizio Sarri and co. did churn out a result. After Arsenal dropped all three points against Southampton, Chelsea are now three ahead of Arsenal.
Here are the major talking points from Chelsea's narrow 2-1 win over Brighton and Hove Albion.
#1 Chelsea dominate early on, Pedro opens the scoring
Right from the outset, Chelsea started just as they always do - with possession and purpose. While they reprocessed their claim on the ball repeatedly, not always did they look sharp until the goal.
Starting from Marcos Alonso to a misplaced pass from David Luiz, the Blues didn't rack up as many passes in their build-up as they would have preferred. Brighton on the other hand, could barely keep hold of it.
Marcos Alonso particularly was abysmal in the opening stages. He fouled Knockaert, which could easily have been given as a yellow. The Spaniard was beaten down his side easily too often. He also surrendered possession enough number of times.
After some waiting, Pedro opened the scoring for his side; his 6th goal of the season, two more than his tally in the whole of last term. Once again, it was Eden Hazard being the architect.
Although he hadn't scored in seven games until the Chelsea talisman has now created four goals in as many games. He picked up the ball on the edge of the box, drove forward and beat a challenge. Just when you thought he will pull the trigger from a narrow-angle, he spotted Pedro's run down the far post and found him exquisitely.
#2 Brighton didn't help themselves in the first half
Chelsea exhibited their pacy brand of football and proved to be clinical, but Brighton didn't help themselves either.
In the opening exchanges of the fixture, the Blues didn't look all that dynamic and threatening. But, the Seagulls surrendered possession many a time. It almost seemed like, within 30 seconds, they would give the ball back and go on to back-pedal.
Moreover, Chris Hughton's side didn't look ready for the challenge in the first 45 minutes. They setup well, but shot themselves in the foot whenever Chelsea shifted gears. Down the other end, a giveaway from Mateo Kovacic fell to Solly March, who swung his boot at it and saw his effort saved by Kepa.
They were simply wasteful on the ball. For instance, on the back of a beautiful interchange of passes between Bernardo and March, Murray saw himself on the ball, with just two yellow shirts and acres of space in front of him. Instead of keeping it central and finding Knockaert, who had made an excellent run, the striker slowed it down and went wide.
#3 Chelsea fail to put the game to bed, Brighton reduce the deficit
The Blues started the second half as comfortably as they did after the game's first whistle, but lost their discipline after a while. They could easily have put the result beyond doubt, but a couple of chances went begging.
First up, Pedro, who looked lively all afternoon, dropped deeper to construct a productive attacking move. He laid it off for an advanced Azpilicueta, who wrapped his foot around the ball and put in a delightful, teasing pass to Hazard, who had nothing to do but touch the ball and place it into the back of the net.
However, the Belgium skipper too showed that he is human.
Moments later, Marcos Alonso lashed one into the frame of goal from an acute angle down the left. His shot was fierce and Mathew Ryan was beaten by some distance, but the crossbar came to Brighton's rescue.
The Chelsea skipper switched off when a cross came in from the right towards the far post. Bernardo headed it back into the six-yard area and March halved the deficit with his first goal of the season.
After the goal, Chelsea never looked all that comfortable again.
#4 Why do Chelsea switch off so often every game?
Not for the first time this season, Chelsea have slowed down the tempo of their play within 90 minutes. Offensively, as aforementioned, they didn't take the chance to turn the result into a comprehensive one.
Defensively, the goal they conceded was an absolute mess, considering the fact that they had been so good until that point. Sarri's men had ticked all boxes, in terms of everything.
After they squandered a two-goal cushion, Chelsea just couldn't sort it out. They looked all over the place at times. In the end, what could have been a comfortable three points, became a scrappy, hard-fought victory.
Why do Chelsea suffer like this?
Well, there isn't quite a demanding presence amongst their ranks. Yes, Azpilicueta, David Luiz and Jorginho are leader-like figures, but sometimes, Chelsea needs somebody to calm the nerves, organize the pack of players and then restart.
At the moment, instructions are given quite well, but the calming presence ins't always there in the middle.
#5 Eden Hazard is simply world-class
Eden Hazard is unplayable at times. Enough said.
A total of seven passes played into his path didn't reach him, but the little magician still single-handedly dismantled a packed yet well-drilled Brighton defence. The false 9 role helped him conduct a free roam in front of goal.
The 27-year-old won fouls, flip-flapped past opponents with ease, created a host of chances and looked unbeatable when on the ball. His vision, ability to pick a pass and keep hold of the ball is just superlative.
Even when Willian intercepted a pass and played him through, the forward had the awareness, first of all, to stay onside. He then accelerated forward and from there, you knew he wouldn't miss - such is the purity and conviction in his style of play.
He tore a few records as well. If you still don't believe he is amongst the very best in the modern game, take a look at these.
