Numbers show how poor Chelsea were in Brighton defeat

Chelsea’s sacking of Graham Potter was greeted with fanfare and a general sense that the Blues could only go upwards following the manager’s departure.

However, Chelsea’s post-Potter era has seen the exact opposite, with the Blues appearing even worse under caretaker manager Frank Lampard, who has now lost all three games in charge of Chelsea since taking over from Potter.

Lampard’s latest loss, a 2-1 reverse against Brighton, showed how far Chelsea have fallen, as they dropped to a number of record lows against Brighton.

The Blues succumbed to their 12th loss this season, with goals from Danny Welbeck and 19-year-old Julio Enciso helping Brighton to a famous win at the Stamford Bridge, helping them to a slice of history in games between the two clubs.

Chelsea’s loss against Brighton was the first against the Seagulls at Stamford Bridge in the club’s history as the Blues found themselves breaking even more negative records despite being under new management.

Chelsea had not lost to Brighton at home in its 118 years of existence, and that is only the beginning of Chelsea’s exceptionally poor performance against the Seagulls on Saturday.

In addition to the telling loss, Chelsea were also outclassed on the pitch against Brighton, rarely threatening the Seagulls’ goal, while receiving a battering on their end.

They could only manage 0.5 expected goals throughout the match compared to Brighton who amassed 2.9xG.

Despite being at home, Chelsea only had eight shots on goal against Brighton who finished the game with 26 shots fired against their hosts.

Brighton’s total tally of shots on goal against Chelsea represented the most that an away side had managed at Stamford Bridge since Opta started collecting data in the 2003/04 season.

The figures are just the latest in a long list of ways that Chelsea have fallen short of their usual standards in the 2022/23 season and how much their next manager will have to do to get them back to familiar heights.