Brighton came from behind to knock Chelsea out of the FA Cup.

Chelsea took the lead in the 5^th minute through Bart Verbruggen’s own goal. However, Brighton responded seven minutes later when Georginio Rutter calmly headed home a precise cross from Joel Veltman to bring his side level.

Cole Palmer nearly restored Chelsea’s lead in the 30^th minute. Christopher Nkunku carried the ball forward before setting it up for Palmer, but the England international failed to connect properly, heading the ball over the bar.

Rutter caused problems for the Blues defence towards the end of the first half. He went on a long run, beating Tosin Adarabioyo before delivering a dangerous ball across Chelsea’s goal. However, no Brighton player was there to finish, allowing Marc Cucurella to clear the danger.

Mitoma put Brighton ahead in the second half with what proved to be the winning goal. Rutter was involved again, this time providing the assist.

Chelsea came close to an equaliser during the dying moments of the game. Noni Madueke dribbled past several Brighton players and entered the box, but a last-ditch tackle from Jan Paul van Hecke denied him the chance to take the match to extra time.

The defeat means Chelsea are now out of both domestic cup competitions, and making their only chance to win a silverware the UEFA Europa Conference League.

After the match, Chelsea head coach Enzo Maresca admitted it was  shameful to crash out “Being out of the FA Cup is a shame, no doubt,” he said. “If there is something positive, we can now focus on the Premier League and the Conference League. Hopefully, we can continue our journey there.”