TEN-MAN Chelsea had VAR to thank for beating bogey-side Brighton but their poor discipline is becoming a nasty habit.
The Blues had their captain sent off for the second match in a row when Conor Gallagher was given a second yellow card in the first half.
But they were then given a helping hand when ref Craig Pawson changed his mind and handed them a penalty after being sent to the pitchside monitor.
Pawson initially waved away Brighton sub James Milner’s challenge on Mykhailo Mudryk as the pair tussled for the ball just inside the Albion box.
Milner had only just come off the bench when he brought down the Ukrainian winger in the incident which ultimately settled a dramatic match.
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Midfielder Enzo Fernandez stepped up to score from the spot and put the game beyond doubt for Brighton who had battled back from 2-0 down.
Fernandez had earlier scored his first Premier League goal for Chelsea since making his then-British-record £106million move to England in January.
Defender Levi Colwill added a second after 21 minutes and boss Mauricio Pochettino’s side should have been home and dry.
But Gallagher joined Reece James as the latest Chelsea star to suffer the curse of the skipper’s armband when he was dismissed on the stroke of half-time.
The midfielder had earlier been booked for a foul on Brighton wideman and goalscorer Facundo Buonanotte.
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He was then punished for clattering into former team-mate Billy Gilmour in first-half stoppage time.
James missed this game with a one-match ban having been sent off in last week’s 4-1 thrashing by Newcastle.
Boss Pochettino also had to sit in the stands last week as he too served a suspension for picking up three yellow cards this season.
His number two Jesus Perez also had to miss a match after being sent off in a dugout row against Brentford.
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And striker Nicolas Jackson has seven yellows - the same amount of cards as he has goals.
Brighton looked leggy after returning from a 4,000-mile round trip to Greece on Friday morning following their Europa League win over AEK Athens.
Buonanotte scored a classy goal on 41 minutes to bring his team back into contention and sub Joao Pedro made it a nervy finale when he headed in from a corner two minutes into added time in the second half.
There was further tension when Brighton claimed Colwill handled in the last minute and Pawson pointed to the spot.
But after consulting the touchline screen again VAR came to Chelsea's rescue as the ref overturned the call before tempers flared after the full-time whistle.
Chelsea recorded their first home league win over Brighton since 2019 and only their second Premier League home win of the season - the other coming against Luton.
