Chelsea fans could possibly be heard getting ‘annoyed’ at Christopher Nkunku during their FA Cup defeat to Brighton.
The Blues were dumped out of the FA Cup on Saturday evening, losing 2-1 to a Brighton team who sold them several of their players.
Chelsea took an early lead when Cole Palmer’s volleyed cross was fumbled into his own net by Brighton goalkeeper Bart Verbruggen.
However the hosts were back level just seven minutes later as Georginio Rutter headed home from Joel Veltman’s cross.
Rutter played a vital role in Brighton’s second-half winner as Kaoru Mitoma was sent through on goal and dinked a positive finish over ex-Brighton star Robert Sanchez.
Enzo Maresca fielded a robust team but was left upset as Chelsea’s poor run of form since mid-December continued and resulted in a FA Cup exit.
£52m signing Christopher Nkunku began within the absence of injured striker Nicolas Jackson but struggled to make an impact, even attracting groans of frustration from the travelling fans.
Because the visitors were chasing a late equaliser, ex-Premier League winger Matt Jarvis said on BBC Radio 5 Live: ‘Chelsea fans were annoyed with Christopher Nkunku.
‘He was driving forward, with Tyrique George completely open on the left-hand side. He just completely stopped and turned back the opposite way. It’s so disappointing.
‘If I’m George, I’m screaming at him to offer me the ball. He has not had a touch after coming on.
‘It was a sensational second-half performance from Brighton. In addition they showed loads of courage and determination to return back in the primary half and so they played their game.
‘That they had to defend in numbers and so they did that brilliantly. But it surely’s the attacking threat that they’ve that has impressed me.’
Brighton suffered a 7-0 defeat to Nottingham Forest last weekend and Seagulls boss Fabian Hurzeler was delighted along with his team’s response against Chelsea.
‘Great response,’ he said. ‘We showed character after that start. I’m happy with how they got here back. It’s hard. That’s why it was well deserved.
‘Mistakes occur. If a keeper makes a mistake normally it’s a goal. We attempt to support him because he’s an awesome goalkeeper.
‘Georginio Rutter is doing good. He adapted quickly to the intensity of the Premier League. He has great skills and showed it today.
‘It was a togetherness on the pitch. It’s a team performance. They bounced back, they stuck together. They didn’t point fingers after losing. They took ownership.’
Chelsea emerged as surprise Premier League title contenders within the first-half of the season but have since slipped to fourth within the table and crashed out of the FA Cup.
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