Japan forward Kaoru Mitoma produced a contender for the Premier League goal of the season as Brighton thrashed Chelsea 3-0 on Friday night.
Chelsea failed to muster a shot on target in their second defeat in the space of seven days at the Amex Stadium.
Mitoma scored the winner when Brighton knocked Chelsea out of the FA Cup fourth round with a 2-1 victory last weekend.
He tormented the Blues again with a breathtaking piece of skill in the first half before Gambia winger Yankuba Minteh netted either side of the interval.
Chelsea manager Enzo Maresca admitted the defeat was the “worst performance” of his reign.
Maresca, in his first season in charge after arriving from Leicester City, said this week that Chelsea “belong” in the Champions League, with the club setting him the target of qualifying within two years.
But Chelsea’s third defeat in their last four games in all competitions was another blow to their hopes of finishing in the top four.
Maresca said: “I feel pressure always, not only now, but tonight the performance we can say was the worst performance since I arrived.
Brighton knock Chelsea out of FA Cup as Man City survive Orient scare
“With this result, the frustration is with everything. We feel really sorry for the fans who came here.”
Maresca will have to find a solution to Chelsea’s chronically error-prone defence if the fourth-placed Blues, two points ahead of Manchester City and Newcastle, are to achieve their target this term.
Maresca added: “When you play this kind of game, the situation we are in, and you perform in the way we did tonight there are many things you can do better.
“It is not only mentally. When you play these games in the moment we are, where you can make the gap bigger to the ones behind us and you perform like we did tonight, there are many things that we need to do better.
“But we are still fourth and we are still in the race to finish well.”
Thrashed 7-0 at Nottingham Forest in their previous league game, Brighton had won only two of their previous 12 top-flight matches.
The Seagulls have got back on track at Chelsea’s expense with a pair of impressive wins.
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