Cole Palmer (right) continued his fine start to the season with what proved to be a vital fourth goal for Chelsea.
The humiliation accelerated Liam Rosenior’s demise and forced the Stamford Bridge hierarchy into a reckoning which has led to the appointment of Xabi Alonso, a shift in the transfer strategy, the JP Morgan front three and the end of Robert Sánchez’s time as the No 1 goalkeeper.
For now, though, the argument that Emiliano Martínez is the final piece in the jigsaw seems a touch premature.
There are many enjoyable parts to Alonso’s rejigged Chelsea, especially when Cole Palmer, Morgan Rogers and João Pedro click in attack, but other problems remain and the early evidence suggests a title challenge will only be sustained if performances become less chaotic.
Alonso looked ready to erupt when Chelsea found themselves clinging on to their lead midway through the second half.
His side had made a blistering start to this game, rattling three unanswered goals past a weakened Brighton, but the level dipped.
Anxiety gripped Stamford Bridge for a while and although Palmer took over during the dying stages, cutting inside to make it 4-2 with a beautiful finish, there is a sense that Chelsea’s winning start to the Alonso era has been a bit too fun.
Conceding five goals in their first two league games is not good enough.
Martínez played well but was denied a clean sheet on his debut after joining from Aston Villa for £7.5m.
Brighton exposed shortcomings in the system and Alonso will want more control. skip past newsletter promotion after newsletter promotion Explore more on these topicsPremier League Chelsea Brighton & Hove Albion match reports Share Reuse this content
