Belgian-Ghanaian midfielder Romeo Lavia scores as Chelsea edge Brighton in seven-goal thriller

Romeo Lavia, the Belgian-born midfielder of Ghanaian descent, scored Chelsea’s opening goal as they held on for a 4-3 victory over Brighton & Hove Albion in a thrilling Premier League encounter at Stamford Bridge on Sunday.

Chelsea appeared to be heading for a comfortable win after racing into a 3-0 lead before Brighton mounted a spirited second-half comeback.

Lavia started the match and played for 68 minutes before being replaced by Reece James.

The result gives the midfielder another notable moment at club level, with his Ghanaian heritage likely to attract interest from football followers across Africa.

Lavia gives Chelsea perfect start

Chelsea needed only four minutes to take the lead after Brighton goalkeeper Bart Verbruggen made a costly mistake.

Lavia was presented with a simple opportunity and made no mistake, putting Chelsea 1-0 ahead.

The hosts doubled their advantage 10 minutes later when Morgan Rogers’ cut-back from the goal line found Pedro Neto in front of goal, allowing the Portuguese forward to finish into the middle of the net.

Chelsea continued to dominate and added a third goal in the 32nd minute.

Jorrel Hato picked out Joao Pedro with a well-weighted pass, and the forward showed composure inside the penalty area before placing his shot into the bottom-left corner.

Brighton begin fightback

Brighton responded just three minutes later when Malick Yalcouye reduced the deficit.

The Brighton midfielder met the ball first time inside the penalty area and sent his effort into the left side of the net, with the shot glancing in off the post.

Chelsea still appeared to have control of the match, but Brighton’s pressure increased after the interval.

Their efforts were rewarded again in the 64th minute when Joao Pedro inadvertently turned the ball into his own net after deflecting a Brighton effort.

The own goal reduced Chelsea’s advantage to 3-2 and gave Brighton renewed belief.

Palmer restores Chelsea’s two-goal lead

Chelsea responded 11 minutes later to regain control.

Cole Palmer collected the ball, weaved past several opponents and produced a superb finish from the edge of the penalty area, sending his shot into the bottom-left corner beyond Verbruggen.

The goal restored Chelsea’s two-goal cushion at 4-2.

Brighton refused to surrender, however, and continued to push for another way back into the game.

Brighton leave it late

The visitors eventually found a third goal deep into stoppage time.

In the sixth minute of added time, Pascal Gross rose highest to meet a cross and directed his header towards the left side of the goal.

Chelsea goalkeeper Emiliano Martinez was unable to prevent the effort from finding the net.

Brighton had little time left to search for an equaliser, though, and Chelsea held on to secure a dramatic 4-3 victory.

For Lavia, the early goal provided a significant contribution to Chelsea’s second Premier League match of the 2026/27 season.