In a truly remarkable match, Cole Palmer turned in a performance of such immense quality it is only fair to call it a masterclass, as he scored four goals before half-time against Brighton, making Premier League history in the process as the Blues ran out 4-2 winners.
After seven minutes, Chelsea were behind, as Robert Sanchez made a terrible error by rushing out of his goal to claim a looping loose ball after Brighton pressed high. Georginio Rutter instead won the header and scored, with Sanchez way out of his goal.
Palmer hit the post shortly after as Chelsea tried to find an equaliser, and then scored 60 seconds later, but was ruled to be offside. Not to be denied, however, Palmer netted after Nicolas Jackson capitalised on an Adam Webster mistake to square for the ex-Manchester City man.
Jadon Sancho saw a VAR check rule out his first Blues goal in the 23rd minute, but in the 26th, he won a penalty, which Palmer stepped up to convert. Palmer then completed his hat-trick on the half-hour mark with a truly sensational free-kick from 25 yards.
Brighton just would not lie down, though, and less than five minutes later, Carlos Baleba capitalised on another Sanchez error to score. Amazingly, however, Palmer had his fourth goal before half-time, powering a low finish into the bottom corner.
The game somewhat petered out in the second half, which is to be expected given the crazy first-half, but it is a fixture that will forever be remembered for Palmer’s heroics.
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