Chelseas miserable run of form continued at the Amex Stadium as their Champions League aspirations were dealt another blow with a 3-0 defeat to Brighton and Hove Albion.The Blues made the trip to the south coast having seen their winless run in the Premier League extended to four, each of those defeats coming without them scoring a goal.And that dismal streak was stretched to five as Brighton leapfrogged them into sixth in the table with a richly deserved victory. It is the first time since 1912 that Chelsea have lost five successive league games without scoring.Ferdi Kadioglu opened the scoring in the third minute and, despite failing to take further advantage of their first-half dominance, the Seagulls completed a double over Chelsea as Jack Hinshelwood doubled their advantage in the 56th minute.Chelsea never looked like mounting a comeback and Danny Welbeck added late gloss to the scoreline as he capped a superb night for Brighton in style as they moved two points clear of the Blues.Liam Roseniors beleaguered side remain seven points behind fifth-placed Liverpool in the race for the top-five place that would guarantee qualification for Champions League.Liverpool can stretch that gap to 10 by beating Crystal Palace on Saturday, meaning that Chelsea will likely be left hoping Aston Villa can win the Europa League and turn sixth place into a Champions League spot. After a performance in which they did not manage a shot on target and with Brighton in this kind of form, even a top-six finish looks fanciful for Chelsea right now. Chelsea cut apart by brilliant BrightonBrighton started brilliantly and, after Kaoru Mitoma saw a far-post half-volley brilliantly turned over by Robert Sanchez, the hosts opened the scoring from the resulting corner.The delivery to the near post was headed away by Jorrel Hato, but only as far as Kadioglu, whose powerful drive left Sanchez with no chance.Sanchez was required to produce another fine save to tip over a Jan Paul van Hecke header, but the former Brighton goalkeeper was almost left red-faced as he sent a pass straight to Carlos Baleba, with only the intervention of Trevoh Chalobah on the goal line preventing Hinshelwood from making it 2-0.Chelsea were somewhat improved to start the second half, but a team missing Joao Pedro, Cole Palmer and Estevao never truly threatened to find a way back into the contest.And they were caught on the counter following one of their sporadic forays forward, with Brighton breaking rapidly after handball claims against Yankuba Minteh were waved away.Brilliant work from Georginio Rutter gave Brighton a two-on-two, and he teed up Hinshelwood to double the lead with a composed finish.Kadioglu was then twice denied by a pair of Sanchez saves before Alejandro Garnacho and Marc Guiu saw opportunities go begging for Chelsea, whose miserable night was completed when Welbeck fired in from Maxim De Cuypers pull back.The FA Cup looks Chelseas most likely route to salvaging something positive from a campaign that is falling apart. But amid their awful run of form, a win over Leeds United in Sundays semi-final is far from a guarantee. Topics Brighton & Hove Albion F.C. Chelsea F.C. Premier League Add us as a preferred source on Google If you enjoy reading this article, you can help support our independent football journalism by adding 101 Great Goals as a preferred source You Should Also Read Brighton vs Chelsea live: Confirmed teams and full lineups in Premier League, TV channel, live online stream as Cole Palmer misses out Ben Miller 21st April, 2026 LIVE Brighton v Chelsea: Commentary, updates, goals and stats Jon Fisher 21st April, 2026 Brighton v Chelsea: Line-ups, stats and preview Nicholas McGee 21st April, 2026 Rosenior insists he has 100% Chelsea support after four straight defeats Mitch Fretton 20th April, 2026 Liverpool defender makes revelation over future as contract winds down Nicholas McGee 20th April, 2026 Guardiola unsure of extent of Rodri injury as he urges Manchester City focus Nicholas McGee 20th April, 2026
