LIVE: Chelsea vs Brighton – Premier League

Live Match, Published On 30 Aug 2026 Chelsea host Brighton for an intriguing Premier League game, with both sides looking to build on strong starts to the season. The match at Stamford Bridge, London kicks off at 2pm (13:00 GMT). 14 UpdatesRogers says there’s more to come after starting life at Chelsea with a goalMorgan Rogers ‌marked his competitive debut for Chelsea with ⁠a goal ⁠in Monday’s 3-2 Premier League victory over Fulham and while the forward was pleased with ⁠his performance he said he has still to hit top gear.Chelsea paid a British record 117 million pound ($159.51 ⁠million) fee to sign Rogers from Aston Villa last month and he did not take long to show what he is capable of, netting their second goal with ‌a side-footed effort at Craven Cottage.The 24-year-old combined well with fellow attackers Cole Palmer and Joao Pedro before being substituted by manager Xabi Alonso with about 10 minutes left.“I didn’t feel that sharp towards the end, I was a bit ⁠tired and that’s why I came ⁠off for the last 10 minutes,” Rogers told Chelsea’s website.“Coming to a new team, you don’t want to come in sluggish and ⁠off the pace, so I tried to keep myself in the best ⁠shape as possible and I’ve ⁠tried to get up to speed as quickly as I can.“I still think there are more gears to go, and I’ve got ‌to try and find them as quickly as possible because the games are coming thick and fast.”Rogers in action against Fulham at Craven Cottage [Adrian Dennis/AFP]Hurzeler warns of Cole Palmer threat, says he’s happy with squadAfter a poor season last term, Palmer looked back to his best against Fulham as he thrived while roaming in a free role under Alonso.During his pre-match news conference, Hurzeler warned his side cannot defend against Palmer on a “one-to-one” basis and must be collectively strong to stop the playmaker and Chelsea’s other talents.The German coach said he was happy with his own squad as the transfer window is set to close.“There’s a minor issue with small injuries but I’m not here to complain; I’m here to find solutions together with my team and that’s what we try to do since day one, so yes, I’m happy with the squad,” he said.He said new signings Jaouen Hadjam and Promise David should be available for the Chelsea game.I think they are two great players. Two great personalities. They make our squad stronger,” he said.David in action for Canada during the World Cup as he challenges Morocco’s Yassine Boubou [Troy Taormina/Reuters]Welbeck scores first Chelsea goal in League Cup win over LutonDanny Welbeck netted his first Chelsea goal as the Blues shrugged aside third-tier Luton 2-0 at Stamford Bridge on Thursday to reach the League Cup third round.The front three of Joao Pedro, Cole Palmer and Morgan Rogers caught the eye in a 3-2 win at Fulham on Monday to open the Xabi Alonso era at Chelsea with victory.But 35-year-old Welbeck showed he will be a useful addition to the Chelsea squad by heading in Malo Gusto’s cross to break Luton’s resistance after a goalless first half.“I bring the average age a little bit higher!” Welbeck said on what he brings to a Chelsea squad that has lacked experience in recent seasons.“The experience of playing games, being around loads of different dressing rooms and knowing what is a good dressing room and a bad one. Knowing what it takes to achieve something special.”Hakeem Odoffin’s own goal killed the tie off after another dangerous delivery by Estevao as Chelsea set up a home tie against Leeds in the last 32.Welbeck, right, and Reece James celebrate after the win over Luton [Peter Cziborra/Action Images via Reuters]Vote now in our pollThis content is unavailable due to your cookie settings.To continue, please allow functional cookies from third-party platforms.Alonso happy with squad ‘balance’ amid busy transfer windowSelling Fernandez would ease the pressure on Chelsea to meet financial sustainability regulations after another window of heavy investment in the transfer market.Morgan Rogers, Maxence Lacroix, Marco Palestra, Valentin Barco, Pep Chavarria, Danny Welbeck, Emmanuel Emegha and Geovany Quenda have arrived at Stamford Bridge for combined fees in excess of 300 million pounds ($406m).Aston Villa’s Emiliano Martinez is also set to join to replace the error-prone Robert Sanchez as Chelsea’s first-choice goalkeeper.There have also been a number of departures from the club in recent days, including strikers Liam Delap and Nicolas Jackson.Alonso, who previously said his bloated squad size needed to be drastically cut, is satisfied with the clear-out.“We are quite close to the plan that we had. We will see where we finish, if it’s fully executed or there are some things still to be done,” he added.“But overall the balance of what we have is going to be good. We need to see how the last few days develop.”Martinez has been signed from Villa but may not make the starting XI for the game against Brighton [Vincent Carchietta/Imagn Images via Reuters]Fernandez’s Chelsea future uncertain as Alonso seeks commitmentAlonso said he wants players that “feel a desire” to play for Chelsea after Enzo Fernandez was left out of Thursday’s League Cup win over Luton.The Argentina midfielder has been linked with a move to Manchester City, but no suitor has yet met Chelsea’s reported 120 million-pound ($162m) valuation.The 25-year-old came off the bench in the 3-2 win over Fulham to give Alonso a winning start to his reign in the Premier League on Monday.However, the former Real Madrid boss hinted that Fernandez may not be involved against Brighton.“We need to take everything into consideration: players that are in good moments, players that are not feeling that energy to play. For me, it’s very important that they feel that desire to play and to have good preparation,” said Alonso.“We talked and we decided that [for Luton] it was better not to be part of the squad. He’s a top player, there’s no doubt about that.”Alonso arrives at Stamford Bridge for the game against Luton [Peter Cziborra/Reuters]Later on Sunday, United look to kickstart season against IpswichIn Al Jazeera’s second featured game of the day, United face Ipswich Town with the hosts badly in need of a win after a shock defeat in their opening game.Michael Carrick was rewarded with the United job on a permanent basis after guiding the Red Devils to third in the Premier League last season during an interim spell in charge.However, the new campaign got off to the worst possible start for Carrick with a 2-0 defeat at newly-promoted Hull last weekend.Meanwhile, Ipswich, who were also promoted from the Championship last season, got off to a dream start in their first game of the season, winning 2-1 at home to Sunderland.Ipswich also saw off Leicester City 3-1 in the League Cup in midweek and will fancy their chances of springing an upset against the Red Devils.A defeat for United would see them become the first team in Premier League history to start a season with back-to-back losses against promoted sides.Read the match preview here.United’s Bruno Fernandes reacts after Nobel Mendy scores Hull’s second goal [Scott Heppell/Reuters]Brighton’s team newsYankuba Minteh, Kaoru Mitoma, Stefanos Tzimas and Evan Ferguson are all long-term absentees for Brighton.Jack Hinshelwood and Georginio Rutter are doubts after picking up knocks. If Rutter is unable to feature, then either Charalampos Kostoulas or new loan signing Promise David could start up front.Predicted starting XI:Verbruggen (goalkeeper); Kadioglu, Boscagli, Dunk, Vuskovic; Wieffer, Ayari; Gomez, Gross, De Cuyper; KostoulasGet instant alerts and updates based on your interests. Be the first to know when big stories happen.Chelsea’s team newsMarco Palestra remains unavailable due to an injury, as does Jordan Henderson, who continues to recover from a broken wrist sustained while celebrating England’s last-16 World Cup win over Mexico.However, Alonso said he was hopeful that key midfielder Moises Caicedo will be fit enough to face his former club, while Levi Colwill and Geovany Quenda are also in contention to play.Defender Wesley Fofana returns after serving his suspension for a red card on the final day of last season at Sunderland.Alonso suggested that the unsettled Enzo Fernandez may not feature as he is being linked with a move to Manchester City.Predicted starting XI:Sanchez (goalkeeper); Fofana, Lacroix, Colwill; Gusto, Caicedo, James, Chavarria; Palmer, Rogers; Joao Pedro