Chelsea have to face the facts - the only way into Europe is winning the FA Cup

Lewis Henderson
Tue, 21 Apr 2026 21:13:20 +0000

In what is turning into a campaign to forget for Chelsea, the Blues succumbed to their fifth straight loss in a display that lacked drive and ambition against Brighton.

The away end at the Amex, which understandably struggled to make noise throughout the evening, watched on as their side failed to register a single shot on target.

Liam Rosenior set up Chelsea in a back five, a setup and formation which would surely look to contain Brighton, with two holding midfielders of Moises Caicedo and Romeo Lavia.

But just three minutes later, the Blues boss's nightmares came true as Ferdi Kadıoglu scored from yet another set piece that Chelsea had conceded.

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With the game plan now out the window and any lack of direction gone, it set up a troublesome evening for the west Londoners.

Brighton moved the ball well, retained possession and kept Chelsea pinned in their own half for lengthy periods of the fixture.

If it was not for Robert Sanchez's saves, the score line could have very easily been three or four nil before half time, which would have been thoroughly deserved for the Seagulls.

Fabian Hurzeler, who set up without several key men, including club captain Lewis Dunk, on the bench and goalscorer Danny Welbeck.

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The home supporters knew it, too, and were quick to react whenever Chelsea made errors, of which there were many.

For the saves he makes with his hands, Sanchez lets down with his feet as he repeatedly punted the ball out of play, killing any sort of momentum Rosenior's side could create.

The poor distribution, which nearly led to a goal if it was not for Trevoh Chalobah's heroics with a clearance on the line, has been a story for countless games and is part of the reason Chelsea are so wobbly at the back.

The Blues have already conceded more goals in the league this season compared to their last campaign, which comes as no surprise given the lack of certainty between the defence and the goalkeeper. If Chelsea has to improve somewhere, it starts in net.

At the top end of the pitch, poor old Liam Delap would have felt like he was still in his Ipswich Town days, chasing blind alleys with no support at all due to the five at the back set-up.

With a breakdown between midfield and attack, to go with the defensive-minded players in the middle of the park, the performance captured what has been a terrible run of form for Chelsea.

Goals from Jack Hinshelwood and Danny Welbeck were inevitable on the evening, to cap off another miserable evening for Chelsea fans.

But Rosenior does have a rainbow in his clouds, the FA Cup.

With Brighton now leapfrogging them in the table and five other teams in the hunt of the Blues, their route into Europe could be silverware.

Leeds United await them in England's oldest competition on Sunday, in what carries more wait than just a normal one-off semi-final.

It sets up next season; it feels like their be-all and end-all.

For Rosenior, a trophy in his opening spell with the Blues and qualification into the Europa League can be the lifeline he requires to save his bacon at Stamford Bridge.

But going forward, he will know they have to recruit. Change the policy of only going young and bring in some desperately needed experience to give the youth someone to turn to.

Five straight losses in the league means European qualification is too tricky through the conventional pathway and the moving parts around them: the FA Cup is Rosenior's option for Europe.