London [UK], August 30 : Chelsea continued their unbeaten run under new manager Xabi Alonso, overcoming a late fightback from Brighton and Hove Albion to settle for a 4-3 win in a thriller at Stamford Bridge on Sunday.
Chelsea raced to a three-goal lead early in the first half, but the second half saw some fight from Brighton; it was still not enough, with Chelsea walking away with their full three points. Chelsea started their Premier League campaign with a 2-0 win over Luton Town.
Emiliano Martinez, a 7.5 million pound signing from Aston Villa, was in the starting XI. Chelsea also missed the services of Enzo Fernandez amid some interest from Manchester City, while Moises Caicedo had to come off injured soon after coming on for his first appearance of the season.
Lavia put Chelsea at advantage really quickly, making best of an error from Bart Verbruggen to fire a close-range goal in the fourth minute. Pedro Neto (14th minute) and Joao Pedro (32nd minute) made it 3-0 within the first half an hour. Morgan Rogers delivered Neto an assist, crossing for Neto's strike.
Malick Yalcoule fired on in the 35th minute to bring some hope in the Brighton camp, but at the half-time whistle, the scoreline was 3-1 in Chelsea's favour. In the 63rd minute, a shot from Pascal Gross deflected off Pedro and beyond Martinez, making it an own goal from Pedro in the 63rd minute, with the scoreline 3-2.
In the 74th minute, Cole Palmer came in clutch for Chelsea, sending a finish into the corner of the goal from the edge of the box, doubling the lead for Chelsea. In the stoppage time, Gross headed one past Martinez, but it was too late since the final whistle sounded soon after.