Chelsea blew it at the death, as Danny Welbeck scored a late equaliser against The Blues to force a 1-1 draw at the Bridge
By Kehinde Okeowo
Chelsea lost further ground on Man City.
despite Romelu Lukaku scoring in two straight games after returning to the starting lineup, as they conceded a stoppage-time equaliser to Brighton Hove & Albion.
Lukaku opened the scoring for Chelsea in the 28th minute after a pass from Mason Mount to give the Blues a 1-0 lead in the first half, but Brighton matched the home side toe-to-toe up and down the pitch.
The Seagulls were rewarded for their endeavour when substitute Danny Welbeck scored a dramatic stoppage-time equaliser in the 91st minute for Brighton to deny Chelsea victory and dealt a blow on their title aspirations.
Chelsea looked set to move 3 points clear of the nearest rival, Liverpool, and just 5 points adrift of City after Romelu Lukaku scored his second consecutive goal after returning to the starting lineup after two months on the sideline.
But they were held by Brighton who carved out 18 chances in total at Stamford Bridge but looked set for disappointment before Welbeck rescued a point for them, after scoring from Marc Cucurella’s cross.
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The Blues have now dropped 11 points from their last eight league games, with three draws in their last four matches, as they could not hold out for victory once again.
Their woes were compounded when they lost defenders Reece James who limped off the field and Andreas Christensen who did not appear for the second half to injuries.
They had earlier lost Ruben Loftus-Cheek, who had an ankle injury, Thiago Silva who is recovering from a hamstring injury, and Ben Chilwell, who is set to undergo surgery soon.
Chelsea head into 2022 second on the Premier League table – one point above third-placed Liverpool, who they face on Sunday at Stamford Bridge.