Cole Palmer Seals Chelsea's 4-3 Win as Brighton Rally Falls Short

Chelsea held off Brighton & Hove Albion for a 4-3 Premier League victory at Stamford Bridge after turning a fast start into a tense finish. The Guardian reported that Cole Palmer scored Chelsea's fourth goal late in the second half, restoring a two-goal cushion before Pascal Gross struck for Brighton deep in added time.

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Roméo Lavia opened the scoring after four minutes. Brighton goalkeeper Bart Verbruggen attempted to clear after Mats Wieffer had blocked João Pedro's effort on the line, but the ball fell to Lavia, who finished low. Morgan Rogers then drove away from Luka Vuskovic and crossed for Pedro Neto to make it 2-0 in the 13th minute.

João Pedro added Chelsea's third after another move involving Rogers, who released Jorrel Hato down the left. Hato's delivery found João Pedro unmarked in the middle, and the forward converted against his former club. Brighton responded before halftime when Malick Yalcouyé volleyed in a debut goal after Chelsea goalkeeper Emiliano Martínez had blocked an effort from Charalampos Kostoulas.

The match shifted after the interval. Palmer missed from close range, while Diego Gómez headed wide and later forced a save from Martínez. Brighton reduced the deficit again after working the ball from a corner. Yalcouyé released Gross, whose cross took a deflection off João Pedro and went into the Chelsea net.

With Chelsea under pressure, manager Xabi Alonso introduced Moisés Caicedo, Reece James and Josh Acheampong. Martínez, making his Chelsea debut following a £7.5 million move from Aston Villa, then saved from Olivier Boscagli. Palmer eventually gave the home side breathing room, combining with João Pedro before cutting inside and curling a shot past Verbruggen from 20 yards.

Gross scored Brighton's third so late in stoppage time that only a restart remained. The final score preserved Chelsea's winning opening under Alonso, but the Guardian noted that the team has conceded five goals across its first two league matches. Brighton's comeback followed an opening period in which the visitors, missing several players, conceded three unanswered goals.