Chelsea

Chelsea starting XI:

Emiliano Martinez: The new signing was thrown straight in, claiming two early crosses and making saves from Malick Yalcouye and Charalampos Kostoulas - though the former did beat him with a well-struck volley. He was tested again as Brighton pushed for an equaliser in the second half. 8

Wesley Fofana: Drove forward well in possession and helped pull Brighton players out of position in the build-up. 7

Maxence Lacroix: The new signing from Crystal Palace was confident in possession but not always convincing in a defensive display that was occasionally ragged. 6

Levi Colwill: Also looked comfortable on the ball but was caught out of position at times in new manager Xabi Alonso's system. 6

Pedro Neto: Tapped in Chelsea's second goal and put a chance on a plate for Joao Pedro. However, he was most at fault for over-committing to a challenge in the build-up to Brighton's first goal. 7

Malo Gusto: Played out of position in midfield. It was a quiet performance, but he delivered some good corners. 6

Romeo Lavia: After threatening to score from a similar situation in midweek, Lavia tapped in his first Chelsea goal after four minutes. 7

Jorrel Hato: The Dutchman provided a wonderful assist on the counter-attack while playing at wing-back. 7

Cole Palmer: Scored with a wonderful curling effort in the 75th minute. He pressed well but also missed a good chance early in the second half. 8

Joao Pedro: The Brazilian produced a clever flick for Chelsea's opening goal, showcased some excellent touches and made amends for missing a good chance by scoring the Blues' third. 8

Morgan Rogers: His powerful running down the flank set up Neto for Chelsea's second goal. He should have had another assist, but Palmer blazed his effort over the bar. 7

Chelsea substitutes:

Josh Acheampong (on 68, Fofana): Helped steady Chelsea defensively after coming on. 6

Reece James (on 68, Neto): Contributed at both ends of the pitch and provided added energy down the flank. 7

Moises Caicedo (on 68, Lavia): His afternoon was cut short after just 11 minutes as he left the pitch in tears. 6

Pep Chavarria (on 72, Colwill): An energetic cameo and looked eager to get forward. 6

Valentin Barco (on 82, Caicedo): 6

Subs not used: Penders, Gittens, Estevao Willian, Welbeck.

Read the full article and see how you rated the players

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Former Brighton striker Glenn Murray speaking on BBC Radio 5 Live following the 4-3 victory over the Seagulls: "Xabi Alonso will definitely want better game management.

"There is no way on earth when you are 3-0 up after 32 minutes this game should ever be in the balance at any point. They should have blown Brighton away.

"Brighton showed a lot of character. Chelsea had 26% possession at home, the group can control games way better than that.

"It was almost too easy at times. They will not go anywhere near winning the league playing like that. They need to control games better if they want to progress."

Chelsea manager Xabi Alonso speaking to BBC Match of the Day: "Hard fought win but this is the Premier League. We knew that Brighton were tough to beat recently in these games. There was history. It was good to finish with the win but many things happened. We will have time to analyse different stages.

"It was a brilliant first half hour. We could have sored more than three. But we were sitting too deep after that. But this is a process. We need to develop with these wins which give you the confidence."

On forward Joao Pedro: "He has been terrific in all the games he has played this season and also the pre-season. He has the desire to play each game 100% and have a terrific season. We need to help him but it's important he has this hunger to do it."

On new signing Emi Martinez: "It's great to have him. We saw that even today. Even if we conceded three goals, he had a straight impact and he helped the team really well. We are happy we have him.

"He is a great personality and a great goalkeeper. His expression and his charisma influence the rest of the team."

On transfers: "We will see what happens. We are ready for whatever. Most important is the team. And however we finish on Tuesday, I am happy it will be a good squad to compete this season."

Chelsea goalkeeper Emi Martinez, speaking to Sky Sports, after his debut: "I spoke with Chelsea legends John Terry and Petr Cech. I know how big this club is and what we want to achieve this season. I came here to help.

"I had an amazing seven years at Aston Villa. I have come here to challenge and to try and win the Premier League.

"I trained only one day with the team. The guys have treated me really well in the last day or two. I know the talent we have up front. I try to bring that solidity in the back."

On the win against Brighton: "A win is a win. I know it wasn't a perfect game. But in the end, winning and moving on is what we need. We've got 36 games left and it's one week after another.

"I am here for a reason. The front three is amazing. When we go forward, we can hurt teams. We had a lot of chances to finish the game. Cole Palmer and Joao Pedro had chances to kill the game. At the back, we need to bring the goals down."

Did you know?

• Chelsea have won both of their first two games of a top-flight season while scoring 3+ goals each time for the fourth time, after 1936-37, 2010-11, and 2018-19.

• Chelsea's Xabi Alonso is only the fourth manager to see his side score 7+ goals in his first two Premier League games, after Bobby Robson (8 in Sep 1999), Michael Laudrup (8 in Aug 2012), and Marcelo Bielsa (7 in Sep 2020).

Adwaidh Rajan
BBC Sport journalist

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Alonso sprang a surprise by naming Martinez in the starting line-up - less than four hours after his £7.5m move was confirmed by the club.

It is a lifeline for Martinez, who turns 34 next week and fell out of favour at Aston Villa following a failed move to Juventus and the arrival of Japan's Zion Suzuki as Unai Emery's first-choice keeper.

The World Cup winner's every catch was cheered on by the Stamford Bridge faithful during an assured display in goal, though he was unlucky to concede two of Brighton's three goals, his save landing on the feet of Yalcouye for the opener and then getting undone by Joao Pedro's own goal.

His best moment came just before Brighton's second when he made a sharp diving save from Diego Gomez and he also denied Olivier Boscagli and Brighton a third, which would have levelled the score.

Chelsea have spent heavily across the pitch under their new ownership, but for many, a reliable goalkeeper was the missing piece.

Martinez's performance on his debut suggests they might have a solution in the Argentine.

Meanwhile, there will now be question marks over Robert Sanchez's future in west London.

The Spaniard, who had another error-strewn display during the 3-2 opening win at Fulham, was left out of the matchday squad completely as 21-year-old Belgian Mike Penders found a place on the bench as Alonso's number two.

It might well be the case that Sanchez, who was a £25m signing from Brighton in 2023, now joins the long list of players Chelsea are looking to offload before the transfer window closes on Tuesday.

With an experienced shot-stopper in their ranks and the attack continuing to fire, Alonso's Chelsea could aim high this season, but their biggest test yet will come at champions Arsenal who they face next on Sunday, 6 September (16:30 BST).

Whether you were at the game or following from elsewhere, we want to know what you learned.

Have your say on Chelsea's performance

What did you make of Brighton's display?

Reaction and analysis to follow - and come back on Monday for a selection of your replies.

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Goalkeeper Emiliano Martinez says he is "delighted" to sign for Chelsea on a three-year deal.

The 33-year-old, who won the World Cup in 2022, has joined from Aston Villa for £7.5m.

"Coming to Chelsea, for me and my family, was an easy decision to make and I'm just over the moon," Martinez said. "I can't wait to get started.

'I want to be successful here. I'm someone who wants to win at everything I do and I want to bring that here to this football club because it's a football club that wins titles, so I think it's a good match.

"'I'm all passion and I play with my heart. I will give 100 per cent every game, every training session to make the club, my teammates and the supporters proud."

Martinez will make his Chelsea debut against Brighton at 14:00 BST.

There are four games in the Premier League on Sunday and BBC Sport will bring you every moment.

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Brighton are off to a flying start and it was a great opening result and performance by Xabi Alonso's Chelsea, winning the west London derby against Fulham.

Chelsea have got some talented players and, because they've got no European football, they're going to have a good crack in the Premier League this season.

What interested me against Fulham is Chelsea didn't have a lot of possession, but they were effective when they did have possession.

But Brighton are just one of those teams. I don't think I predicted a single Brighton result right last season they're just impossible to call.

I really like Jack Hinshelwood he's such an exciting young player and there's a good history with his family in football and connection to Brighton.

But I'm going to say Chelsea carry on this run and get the three points.

Sutton's prediction: 2-1

Read the full predictions and have your say here

Matthew Hobbs
BBC Sport journalist

Chelsea and Brighton both enjoyed impressive wins in their opening fixtures of the new season.

BBC Sport examines some of the key themes ahead of their meeting at Stamford Bridge on Sunday (14:00 BST).

A first Premier League match at the Chelsea helm proved to be an eventful one for new manager Xabi Alonso.

Joao Pedro was awarded the number nine shirt ahead of this season and rewarded that faith by netting after just 31 seconds – the quickest goal ever scored by a team in their opening Premier League fixture.

If Chelsea's fast start promised a straightforward contest, it proved to be anything but in the visitors' 3-2 win.

Cole Palmer deservedly dominated headlines in a triumphant return to form after setting up the opener and scoring what proved to be the winner in the second half, but Alonso will be equally pleased with the performance of debutant Morgan Rogers.

The £117m summer signing from Aston Villa scored Chelsea's second goal and created five chances from open play for the first time in his Premier League career, while he was also their most effective presser.

However, Chelsea goalkeeper Robert Sanchez did look vulnerable once again, with the Blues now failing to keep a clean sheet in their past 17 Premier League games.

They next face a Brighton team who opened their 2026-27 account by scoring four goals against Villa – their biggest victory on the opening day of a league season in 26 years since beating Mansfield Town 6-0 in the fourth tier.

The Seagulls recorded an expected goals tally of 3.4 from open play – their highest on record – to continue an excellent opening-game record of five wins and a draw in their past six Premier League campaigns.

Central to their success against Villa was an effective high press, long a hallmark of a Fabian Hurzeler team but one that was executed with particular aplomb last Sunday.

Brighton amassed 19 high turnovers, their second highest tally in a league match since Hurzeler joined the club two years ago, although Jack Hinshelwood, who scored a brace last weekend, is set to miss several weeks because of a training ground injury.

Four goals against Villa is followed by a fixture in which the Seagulls tend to flourish in attack. They have triumphed in the past three top-flight meetings with Chelsea, scoring three goals on each occasion.

The last team to score three or more goals in four consecutive league games against the Blues was West Ham United between 1972 and 1974.

Brighton, though, will be wary of an opposing goalscorer who so recently played for them. Danny Welbeck could face his former club for the first time since departing Amex Stadium for Stamford Bridge earlier this summer.

Welbeck is Brighton's highest goalscorer in the Premier League, with 46 goals in 176 appearances. He's also the highest scorer in this Premier League fixture, scoring six times in total – including four at Stamford Bridge.

Nizaar Kinsella
Chelsea reporter

Image source, Getty Images

Chelsea have sanctioned the permanent transfer of striker Marc Guiu to German club RB Leipzig.

The 20-year-old is expected to join Leipzig, although sources in Germany insist there is still work to be done before the deal can be completed.

There are few details at this stage about the potential fee, although Guiu is understood to have been valued at around £25m.

The Spain Under-21 international is nearing a Stamford Bridge exit after joining from his boyhood club Barcelona in 2024 for about £5m.

Guiu played three matches during a short-lived loan spell at Sunderland last season and made 29 appearances in total for Chelsea.

Six of his eight goals for the club came during Chelsea's Conference League-winning campaign in 2024-25.

Guiu trained away from the main first-team group this summer amid expectations that he would leave Stamford Bridge.

Meanwhile, midfielder Kendry Paez has been recalled from an unsuccessful loan spell at Argentine side River Plate to free up an overseas loan slot. He is now expected to join another club on loan, potentially in England.

Nizaar Kinsella
Chelsea reporter

Image source, Getty Images

Chelsea manager Xabi Alonso is not one to go into detail on transfers or discuss players at other clubs.

However, in an exchange with BBC Sport, he assessed how Chelsea's recruitment team have performed against his request to reduce the size of the squad while increasing its quality, a process that dates back to the interview stage before he joined the club.

"We are quite close to the plan we had," he said, adding: "We will see where we finish, whether it is fully executed or whether there are still things to be done, or things we could not do."

His comments align with information emerging from Stamford Bridge about the club's recruitment strategy.

Chelsea believe any sale, particularly one involving Enzo Fernandez joining Manchester City, must leave them stronger than before.

They insist City have yet to make direct club-to-club contact, although much of the groundwork for a deal can be carried out through intermediaries. Chelsea are understood to want more than the initial £120m valuation discussed earlier in the summer after the FA Cup winners missed the club's deadline.

Meanwhile, Chelsea are looking to strengthen elsewhere, with deals for Aston Villa goalkeeper Emiliano Martinez and Atalanta defender Honest Ahanor agreed on Thursday.

There is also interest in Monaco midfielder Lamine Camara, although the Ligue 1 club are seeking what sources describe as an "incredible" offer after rejecting a bid from Crystal Palace earlier in the transfer window.

Chelsea have made significant progress in selling or loaning out players this week, but still have 36 senior players on their books.

Asked how he hopes to manage the numbers, Alonso added: "I don't have a number, I have an idea. We will be close to that. Hopefully, all of them will feel involved. We are all in the same boat and everyone is pulling in the same direction."

Defender Mamadou Sarr has today joined Real Sociedad on loan and Chelsea have accepted a £3m offer from Swiss club Servette for striker David Datro Fofana.

Melissa Edwards
BBC Sport journalist

Chelsea boss Xabi Alonso has been speaking to the media before Sunday's Premier League game against Brighton at Stamford Bridge (kick-off 14:00 BST).

Here are the key lines from his news conference:

• There are no fitness concerns over Levi Colwill and Geovany Quenda after the pair missed Chelsea's Carabao Cup win over Luton Town on Thursday.

• But Alonso said they don't want to push Colwill "too hard" after the defender recovered from an anterior cruciate ligament injury last season.

• A decision is still to be made on whether Moises Caicedo is fit enough to return to training on Friday.

• Alonso said he won't speak about replacing Enzo Fernandez as his rumoured departure to Manchester City is "speculation", but said the Blues are ready for anything.

• On leaving the midfielder out of the squad against Luton, he said: "We need the players that are in the best situation to play. We need to take everything into consideration - players that are in a good moment, players that are not feeling that energy to play. For me, it is very important they feel this desire to play and to have good preparation."

• He added: "We talked and we decided it was better not to be part of the squad. He is a top player."

• The Spaniard said the club are "quite close" to the transfer plan they had and they will wait and see how the final days of the window develop: "We will see where we finish - if it's fully executed or there are things still to be done or things we couldn't do. But, for sure, I think, overall, the balance of what we have is going to be good. It is a process that will take time. We are in a good position, with a few more days to see."

• Danny Welbeck scored his debut goal on Thursday and Alonso described him as a "great influence" on the rest of the players and someone who is "raising the standards" among his squad.

• On facing Fabian Hurzeler's Brighton: "I know him very well from Germany, from St Pauli. He's developing the team, new players, a very intense team with interesting things. So, that's why it's going to be a good clash, a good test, on Sunday."

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Follow all of Friday's Premier League news conferences and the rest of the day's football news

Got a question about Chelsea? Get in touch here and we'll seek answers from our experts

Nizaar Kinsella
Football reporter

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Chelsea have announced a new one-year front-of-shirt sponsorship deal with Circle Internet Group.

The agreement will promote USDC by Circle, a digital "stablecoin" designed to maintain parity with the US dollar, on the front of the player's shirts this season.

Chelsea said in a statement that Circle "enables people and businesses to move money globally with internet speed and 24/7 availability".

The Blues started the season without a shirt sponsor for the fourth consecutive year since their last long-term deal, with telecommunications company Three, ended at the conclusion of the 2022-23 season.

Since then, Chelsea have agreed shorter-term deals with AI company Infinite Athlete and Dubai-based property company Damac.

However, they have also spent longer without a front-of-shirt commercial partner than any other Premier League club during that period.

Chelsea say their new deal with publicly-owned Circle Internet Group will give them new sponsorship revenue in line with their expected market rate, which was believed to be about £50m per season, though the exact figures have not been given.

According to The Sponsor, which publishes an annual Premier League fair market value index for front-of-shirt and sleeve sponsorships, Chelsea's projected value fell from £50.3m to £33.6m after they finished 10th in the Premier League at the end of last season.

Sources at Stamford Bridge have explained that they carefully selected the partnership due to both partners prioritising innovation and the desire to be future facing, highlighting the USDC - as a cryptocurrency - is regulated and backed by the dollar.

The brand will appear on Chelsea's shirts for the men's, women's and academy teams, with the Premier League match against Brighton at Stamford Bridge set to be its first appearance.

It remains unclear whether another long-term partner will be sought or whether Circle opt to extend their deal beyond the end of the 2026-27 campaign.

Image source, Getty Images

We asked for your views on Chelsea's 2-0 win over Luton Town in the second round of the Carabao Cup.

Here are some of your comments:

Peter: Controlled the game, always looked likely to score, but was never tested at the back. Cole Palmer was excellent again and Valentin Barco was brilliant on his debut. Who needs Enzo Fernandez!

Nick: Very solid all-round performance. Dominated - as expected - and the result was never in doubt. Luton were stubborn and put up a good fight. Barco was impressive - very neat and controlled. Didn't learn much about Mike Penders as he had nothing to do. Job done. Leeds will be much tougher.

Hooriya: Useful minutes for some of the players not much involved against Fulham. Was surprised Palmer got to play full 90 minutes after that injury scare just days ago. On to the next one.

James: Job done and a tricky tie against Leeds next. Danny Welbeck showed his experience, which is exactly what Chelsea need. I hope this competition represents a realistic chance of a trophy and, with the Emi Martinez arrival pending, I am cautiously optimistic.

Tom: Very happy early in the season they look like they are enjoying the game and I like the comradeship. Time will tell, and Martinez would be a great addition.

Chelsea are in talks to sell striker Marc Guiu to Napoli and the deal is progressing. (Sky Sports), external

Meanwhile, Manchester United have been offered the chance to sign Blues centre-back Tosin Adarabioyo. (GiveMeSport), external

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