Enzo Maresca responds after Chelsea owners march into dressing room following Brighton defeat

Chelsea were beaten by Brighton at Stamford Bridge with Danny Welbeck scoring a brace and Maxim De Cuyper finding the net for the Seagulls, before Enzo Maresca faced uncomfortable questions

Enzo Maresca has delivered his response after Chelsea’s owners stormed into the dressing room following Saturday’s 3-1 defeat against Brighton. Chelsea co-controlling owner Behdad Eghbali and sporting directors Paul Winstanley and Laurence Stewart, plus Joe Shields and Sam Jewell all marched straight into the changing room area at Stamford Bridge.

Brighton players were still out on the pitch celebrating with the 3000 plus travelling supporters, while Chelsea’s stars went down the tunnel and gathered in the dressing room to be addressed by Maresca and the owners.

When asked for his reaction to Chelsea’s owners going inside the changing room post-match, Maresca admitted that it’s common practice. “They have been inside the changing-room, like always,” the Italian said.

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“We have an office inside the changing-room, where after every game, we sit and we talk about the game. But they did not say anything to the players. It was nothing completely different compared to the rest of the games.”

Chelsea made a fast start against the Seagulls and went 1-0 ahead through Enzo Fernandez in the 24th minute.

The Blues had opportunities to double their lead, but were punished when Danny Welbeck levelled in the second half after Trevoh Chalobah had been sent off for a last man foul on Diego Gomez.

Brighton then dominated with the man advantage and found the all-important winner in the 92nd minute as Maxim De Cuyper, a summer signing from Club Brugge, scored his first Seagulls goal with a close-range header.

Welbeck added his second and Brighton’s third deep into stoppage-time to seal their second Premier League win of the season in west London, after beating Manchester City 2-1 last month.

As for the Blues, it’s their second straight top-flight defeat following last weekend’s loss at Manchester United. “It’s a tough one because we were in control of the game, we scored one, we scored more, we didn’t concede nothing, the Chelsea head coach said.

“They just said to me also in terms of data, we had so many shots in the first half, 70% of possession, everything was fine. And then suddenly, because of our mistake, and then with the red card, again, the plan completely changed. So for me we played two games, first-half, and then unfortunately after the red card.”

Brighton boss Fabian Hurzeler, meanwhile, believes their win at Chelsea could be a springboard to kickstart their campaign after a mixed start. “When you only look at the results, maybe you can say yes,” the German said.

“But if you look regarding the performance, maybe you can say no. The games are very tight. There are always small margins that make the difference, the small margins were on our side in this match. I’m sure that we can get into a good run and get into a flow. First of all, it’s about hard work and staying together.”

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