Enzo Fernandez spent well over two minutes at the final whistle, staring aimlessly at a sparsely filled away section of the Amex Stadium, as Chelsea fans vented their wrath: at him, at the owners, at coach Liam Rosenior, at anyone within shouting distance.
The Argentina international, a World Cup winner, stood motionless, save for the occasional clearing of the throat, as if he didn’t know what to do. It mirrored his display over the preceding 90 minutes.
Chelsea were a rudderless mess at Brighton last night, losing 3-0 and failing to muster a shot on target.
They slipped to seventh in the Premier League as a result, below a vastly superior Seagulls side, with their hopes of playing in next season’s Champions League now in serious jeopardy. It was Chelsea’s fifth consecutive defeat without scoring – their worst such sequence since 1912.
There was a special irony in losing to Brighton, a well-run club that have been able to build, and rebuild their squad across several iterations thanks largely to selling cleverly acquired players to Chelsea for around £280million. Former home favourites Robert Sanchez, Marc Cucurella and Moises Caicedo were a part of last night’s shambles while Joao Pedro watched on.
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Blame for Chelsea shambles should not fall solely on Rosenior
It would be easy to blame Rosenior for the performance, his switch to five at the back failed spectacularly with Brighton’s clever movement causing issues all night. Has he made Chelsea better since succeeding Enzo Maresca, under whom the club were crowned world champions? The answer is an emphatic no.
However, it is impossible not to feel some sympathy for the Londoner. He has proved himself elsewhere as a bright young coach but has been dropped into a dressing room full of young millionaires on eight-year deals and clearly lacking motivation.
The players’ levels of effort last night made it clear they weren’t playing for their boss, or the club. They were going through the motions.
Rosenior went into self-preservation mode afterwards.
He said: ”I keep coming out and defending the players – that’s indefensible, that performance tonight.
“The manner of the goals we conceded, the amount of duels that we lost, the lack of intensity in the team. Something needs to change drastically right now.
“I think the players need to have a look in the mirror for what they put in. You can talk about tactics… tactics come after the basics.
“Having more courage to play, winning duels, winning headers, tackles, conceding terrible goals. That was an unacceptable performance tonight.”
Chelsea model flawed and requiring urgent review
Chelsea co-owner Behdad Eghbali was in the stands at the Amex and was spotted frantically typing into his phone after Danny Welbeck netted Brighton’s third.
He may well have been texting Todd Boehly with a message that simply read: “S***.”
Eghbali, Boehly and the rest of the Clearlake Capital consortium must also shoulder a large proportion of the blame for Chelsea’s current failings.
Under Roman Abramovich, Chelsea steadily grew into a European powerhouse, signing elite players ready-made for the rigours of challenging at home and on the continent.
The current model of signing multiple players and hoping a few come off, either to be sold or inserted into the first team, is unusual among clubs that consider themselves elite, as Chelsea do. Handing out eight-year deals to help circumnavigate financial rules is also small time.
Eghbali hinted recently at a change in policy going forward, and Chelsea desperately need some experience in the squad. Last night, there was no-one to grab hold of the team, rattle a few bones and rouse them from their slumber.
Their next assignment is Sunday’s FA Cup semi-final against Leeds. The clash between two age-old rivals feels a pivotal moment for Rosenior, in particular. He has to show he can get a tune from this squad, can inspire and organise and, most importantly, get a much-needed win.
If he can’t then Chelsea, and captain Fernandez, will be staring into the abysss once more.
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