Mykhaylo Mudryk admits he and his Chelsea teammates were “nervous” when Joao Pedro snatched a last-gasp headed goal to half the deficit for Brighton at Stamford Bridge. Chelsea clung on to a 3-2 victory over the south coast side on Sunday after being reduced to ten men on the stroke of halftime.
Skipper Conor Gallagher was shown a second yellow card for a reckless challenge on Billy Gilmour that ensured Mauricio Pochettino’s men faced an uphill battle in the second stanza despite heading into the break 2-1 up.
Brighton piled on the pressure when the action resumed but the visitors’ momentum was stopped in its tracks when Mudryk was brought down inside the box by James Milner. Enzo Fernandez converted from the spot to double the Blues’ advantage but Pedro had Chelsea squirming when he fired the Seagulls back into the game.
The west Londoners were able to keep their cool as they eventually saw out the game but there were nervous moments in the closing eight minutes. “It is a great result for us but we were nervous the last minutes, last ten,” said Mudryk after the game. “Ten minutes of additional time is always hard. When you play ten against eleven it is always tough but I’m very proud of our team today and it’s a great win for us.”
Part of what helped Chelsea remain on top of the game was the excellent support they received from their home fans. Mudryk was met with one of the loudest cheers every time he got on the ball which gave the Ukrainian a ‘big boost’.
“[It gives me] a boost a lot and I really appreciate the support of our fans, I really love them and thank you for their support,” he added. “I try to do my best always.”
Pochettino was beaming with pride after the game as he gave an honest assessment of his side’s gutsy display. He said: “This type of period where you are building something, it always happens. We are a young team. I want to clarify – not we are young players, we are a young team.”
“We need to improve, we need to learn. The Premier League is the best in the world. We have too many players that need to feel what it means to play in the Premier League. We were a little bit more aggressive after Newcastle where we didn’t show our real face.
“We wanted to play well, to be aggressive and show we care. I think the team was really good, I feel proud. After Newcastle it was tough, and a team like Brighton is always difficult to play. I am so proud of the players and the character that they showed. I told them at half-time, ‘it’s 2-1 to us, it’s a great opportunity for us – now we need to show that we are a team’.”
