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Former Brighton & Hove Albion forward Glenn Murray feels Chelsea are out of the Premier League title race after their 1-1 draw against the Seagulls on Tuesday.
The Blues were second-best at the Amex Stadium against Brighton, but took the lead through a Hakim Ziyech strike.
Brighton rallied in the second half and equalized through Adam Webster and looked the better team for the majority of the game.
Ziyech did not celebrate his goal against the Seagulls, and Murray suggested on BT Sport that his body language after the goal was flat, pretty much like his club's display:
"I was disappointed with that reaction to the goal. I think if you celebrate that in front of your own fans it gives you a buoyancy for the next ten minutes to go on and put this game to bed."
"That’s what Chelsea ultimately needed to do and should have done. We keep on referring to the Champions of Europe team that are looking probably as a top four team now. Not the Champions."
"I think that race is probably ran for them. In all due respect they’ve dropped four points against a Brighton team that if they want to win the Premier League they need to take four to six points easily."
"Against the run of play they got a goal. That was sort of, for me, a leg up. Now you go and take this game, you go and put it to bed. Even just with the celebration. It was a flat celebration. It passes on to teammates doesn’t it?" Murray said.
Chelsea all but out of the Premier League title race
The Blues looked leggy against Brighton, who saw less of the ball but played with more verve. This was Chelsea’s third draw in four games, and they have now failed to win their last four in the league.
The Blues could fall 15 points behind Manchester City if the league leaders win their game in hand. Even though there are 15 games left to play, the gap might already be too much for Chelsea.
Thomas Tuchel’s side have not hit their stride in recent weeks as tiredness has seemingly seeped into their game.
The Blues are active in four competitions, and that will become five in February when they play in the Club World Cup.
