Chelsea U23s suffered a 3-2 defeat to Brighton U23s as the visitors scraped over the line after a second-half fightback from the Blues at the EBB Stadium.
The Blues started off with more possession and urgency as they looked to break the deadlock in the early stages of the contest. However, it was Brighton that took the lead as Viktor Gyokeres’ converted a penalty for his side in the 22nd minute.
Just three minutes before the interval and Brighton gave themselves breathing space on the scoreboard as Aaron Connolly coolly guided the ball through Chelsea shot-stopper Marcin Bulka’s legs.
Just seven minutes into the second half and Jordan Davies put the Seagulls in dreamland having shifted the ball to his stronger right-foot before a tidy finish into the bottom right-hand corner.
Conor Gallagher, brother of Shots’ midfielder Jake Gallagher, won his team a penalty as 17-year-old Billy Gilmour stepped up from the spot to earn Chelsea a lifeline.
Gilmour spoke after the match saying that the EBB Stadium is suited to his team’s style of play.
“It’s a good stadium, the pitch is good, it’s suited to us, it’s big and wide so that’s how we play, we get the ball down and knock it side to side and try and score as many goals as we can so it’s a good stadium here.”
Just three minutes later, Chelsea made what seemed like a routine win for Brighton turn into an exciting and tense final quarter of the match. Substitute Tino Anjorin, who made his debut for Joe Edwards’ development squad, swivelled to lose his defender before firing a shot past Hugo Keto.
Despite all the pressure that Chelsea exerted in the final stages, it wasn’t to be as Brighton held on to secure the three points.
This result has seen Chelsea slip to fifth in the Premier League 2 table, with Brighton jumping up to the top of the ladder. The next Chelsea U23s match Aldershot Town will be hosting is against Tottenham Hotspur U23s on the 23rd November at 7pm.
Report by Ben King
